The report describes the features and requirements of an improved demand information and forecasting system. The following conclusions were reached: the level of demand is inadequately measured; shipper demand is highly variable, often ranging from plus or minus 50 percent of the average; because of the high purchase price of freight cars, it is prohibitively expensive to respond to these short-term variations in demand by maintaining a sufficient inventory of empty cars to accommodate the highest level of demand at each location; the time lag to recognize and react to change results in many orders being filled late and some amount of business lost to alternative transportation modes; and the size and the impact of the time lag can be reduced if potential surplus and deficit areas can be predicted and car flows adjusted to reduce imbalances before they occur. A demand information and forecasting system is being designed and evaluated on the basis of this study.
Freight Car Demand Information and Forecasting Research Project
1975
189 pages
Report
No indication
English