HOW RAIL WORKS Freight Rail Handbook STEP TWO: THE PROCESS OF LOADING MERCHANDISE CARGO. The customer’s next step in shipping via rail is to load the cargo into one of many rail car types and organize its plan for shipment. Planning at this stage includes: for · Determining the type, volume, origin and destinationeachthe cargo involved in each shipment Determining the weight, height, width and depth of loaded car · The customer providing the shipper with instructions for the cargo’s delivery · The customer communicating with the railroad operator about the status of the shipment · HOW IT WORKS - The course of a railroad shipment. It may seem right to assume that the closer a rail car origin is to its unloading destination, the faster the cargo will be shipped. However, loaded rail cars must first be transferred to a central “processing center” location, called a classification yard or terminal. Just as with the U.S. mail, a railroad shipment must first be transferred to a central terminal before it can continue on to its destination. In some cases, it will proceed through several terminals depending on the origin and destination of the cargo. Factors that will impact a customer’s specific rail routes, or “corridors,” include: Maximum train speed based on the condition of the track City, county or state requirements Curves in the track Hills or grade changes in the track · · · · After arriving at an interim terminal, a loaded rail car is sorted using a bar-coded label, or AEI (Automatic Equipment Identification) tag, directing the shipment to its next train or final processing location.