New TransmetriQ Rate & Route tool helps rail shippers select optimal routes

Railinc’s TransmetriQ brand has launched its Rate & Route tool, designed to improve performance and reduce expense for rail carload shippers.

Rail shippers often spend hours or days scouring industry websites, PDFs, and other sources to understand their rate and route options for different origin/destination (OD) pairs. These options can be complex, with varying distance, cost, transit time, fuel surcharges, and accessorial fees. Rates for the shipment of malt, as one example, are contained in as many as 15 different PDFs for one railroad alone.

The time and expense associated with these searches can now be eliminated by using TransmetriQ Rate & Route.

“Following an initial intake of a shipper’s contract and public rates via artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning tools, Rate & Route stores and can instantly present complete OD-pair rate and route options for any carload shipment,” says Danny Dever, Senior Product Manager, TransmetriQ.

With Rate & Route, shippers can view options that offer varying transit times, rates, and more to determine which option best satisfies their particular business needs. This information not only makes it more efficient to serve existing customers, but also provides fast information when shipping to a new destination or quoting rates under a deadline to win new business.

“Our development team listened to shippers and spent more than a year tackling the challenge of disparately stored rates,” Dever says. “Not only are we able to show public tariffs and contract rates, but we’re also able to show both the waybill and operational routes. This gives shippers a true idea of how they can expect a shipment to move in reality.”

“The release of this solution opens new opportunities for both existing and potential rail shippers,” says Mika Majapuro, Vice President, TransmetriQ. “Rail provides the most efficient way to move freight over land, as well as cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 75 percent compared with truck. TransmetriQ’s Rate & Route makes this supply chain option more attractive than ever before by ensuring shippers have the visibility needed to choose the optimal rate and route for their needs.”