Bison Transport, CPKC Introduce New Intermodal Services

Leader logistics company Bison Transport announced a new agreement with Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) to offer intermodal transportation services on the latter’s north-south corridor, connecting Mexico, Canada, and the United States.

The collaboration aims to provide customers with greater access to industry-leading freight solutions based on Bison Transport's established and expanding supply-chain network throughout North America, explains Robert Penner, President and CEO, Bison Transport.

In a joint press release, the companies say that Bison Transport's growing customer base will immediately have access to cross-border multimodal solutions through the CPKC rail corridors.

Bison Transport expects to expand its intermodal growth in the United States and Mexico, given its rapidly growing customer base in Canada, says Penner. He adds that the establishment of Bison Transport's operations in Mexico show the company’s commitment to the growth of cross-border freight services.

"At CPKC, we connect North American markets with single-line, expedited intermodal freight transportation," says Jonathan Wahba, SVP Sales & Marketing, Bulk & Intermodal, CPKC.

According to data from the Mexican Association of Intermodal Transportation (AMTI), in 3Q23, cross-border intermodal transportation saw a 2% increase in container exports by rail and a 1% increase in the import market. Intermodal transportation is expected to grow as railway companies continue to work on optimizing transit times for their services. New strategic alliances between railways are increasingly emerging, aiming to connect Mexico to the United States and Canada. Numerous service providers are supporting the shipment of automotive parts, food, and temperature-controlled cargo. Intermodal transportation offers significant economic and environmental advantages, including reduced carbon emissions and decreased traffic congestion, says AMTI. 

Given the scarcity and rising costs of full truckload transportation, it is crucial to consider intermodal transportation, says Carlos Canseco, Director, CILQRO. Railways and intermodal services allow operators to plan logistics better, especially when external conditions impact the availability of transport, says Victor Monroy, Managing Director for Mexico and Central America, MSC, to MBN.

Intermodal transportation is expected to grow 10% this year, driven by nearshoring, a lack of trucking capacity, and security issues on Mexican roads, says Diego Anchustegui, President, AMTI, to T21. "In 2024, we will begin to see the benefits and impacts of nearshoring on North American supply chains. Undoubtedly, intermodal transportation will solve problems such as the lack of capacity in trucking, a 10% increase in security issues, ecological concerns, and rising tariffs. These factors will provide an opening for intermodal transportation to grow by double digits this year," says Anchustegui.