Services

Intermodal

Intermodal logistics is the movement of containers using two or more modes of transportation, usually including a rail or truck segment. In November 2004, we entered the intermodal services business in the Pacific Northwest through the acquisition of Northwest Container Services, Inc., which provides repositioning, storage, maintenance and repair of cargo containers for international shipping companies. We provide these services for containerized cargo primarily to international shipping companies importing and exporting goods through the Pacific Northwest through a network of six intermodal operations in Washington and Oregon. Our fleet of doublestack railcars provides dedicated direct-line haul services between terminals in Portland, Tacoma and Seattle. We have contracts with the Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Union Pacific railroads for the movement of containers between our six intermodal operations. We also provide our customers container and chassis sales and leasing services.

Our intermodal business has experienced growth as a result of both increased flow of cargo between the U.S. and Asia and the increased use by international shipping companies of less congested ports in the Pacific Northwest for point of entry rather than in Southern California. We intend to further expand this business through cross-selling efforts with our solid waste services operations. We estimate that currently at least 2.5 million tons per year of solid waste are transported by rail from primarily the Seattle-Tacoma area to remote landfills in Eastern Washington and Eastern Oregon. We believe our ability to market both intermodal and disposal services will enable us to more effectively compete for these volumes.