This is one of those odd little questions that I think would be neat to know the answer to. I recently ordered some model railroad supplies from San Francisco, CA. The package is being shipped to Woodville, TX. (It is about 120 miles NE of Houston) via UPS. Is there a way to find out or does someone know if my model railroad supplies are traveling by train? It isn’t being shipped overnight.
Thanks,
Bill
Judging by the distance and the fact that its not overnight, it’s quite likely that your supplies are being shipped by rail. Unless I’m mistaken, most UPS over-the-road routes are manned as turns (out and back on one shift) so none are very long.
If the package tracking seem to enter a black hole, then it’s likely on the train. (even though the RRs pass the train arrival and departure events on to UPS, they don’t seem to make it into their tracking system)
UPS tracking system, for public consumption, only reports Shipper, UPS and Receiver data. When the shipment arrives and departs the various UPS distribution centers along the route.
Good chance UPS loaded it on a trailer, trucked it accross the bay and drayed it to Richmond/BNSF in order to move it east.
Richmond-Barstow-Ft. Worth (Alliance) then back on the road to you.
You’ll see truck arrival and deparuters at UPS points along the way even when your package is not handle. For example, I’ll see a package moving from CACHE to Atlanta at Louisville and Nashville even though the package isn’t handled en route. Always wondered why UPS doesn’t put any of the rail intermediate arrivals and departures in - they have them. I’d bet it’s a system integration issue.
I’d agree that it most likely road BNSF from Richmond to Alliance.
Did you know that a lot of next day “air” and 2nd day packaged move via rail too? “What” you say??
Let’s say you ship a package from Chicago to Dallas using their 2nd day service… and you ship it on a Thursday or Friday. Assuming you didn’t check “Saturday Delivery”, then you’ve signed up for 2nd “Business Day” delivery. So if you shipped it Thurs, it has to be there by end of day Monday, likewise if you shipped it Friday, they have until Tues PM to deliver.
So for a package you gave them Thurs they put it on the train over the weekend. - that Thurs package makes an early Friday outbound train, 36 hrs later its in Dallas, which is early Sunday morning and you get it Monday, as promised.
It made the 2nd day commitment, you’re happy and UPS pockets a buck. They call that “cold day” freight because it has the weekend to get there, so its not so hot.
Hidden in the UPS data is rail information. The various distribution centers may be rail yards.
As an example I’ve recieved parcels from the southwest on BNSF. The tracking shows arrival at Willow
Springs IN.(BNSF Willow Springs IL yard in fact) with arrival at UPS DC Willow Springs IL. a short time later. Shipments over 600 miles usually are rail . UPS also utilizes their Team Trucks and Team contract Carriers for OTR drayage.
.