An analysis of commercial railroad congestion and its resultant impact on fort-to-port transportation efforts

The United States Army is heavily-dependent upon commercial railroad transportation assets for the movement of cargo and equipment from Continental United States (CONUS) installations to Seaports of Embarkation during unit mobilizations. With the withdrawal of forces from overseas installations, this dependence upon commercial rail assets nas grown dramatically in the past few years. Due to a series of consolidations and mergers, the CONUS rail infrastructure has reached full capacity and is straining to meet civilian demands for rail services. If an environment of congestion, resulting in unanticipated delays, were to develop anywhere within the CONUS rail infrastructure, the movement of military unit cargo and equipment in response to a crisis mobilization or deployment would be severely impacted. This thesis examines the impact of rail congestion on U.S. Army crisis mobilization transportation efforts. Analysis and recommendations are provided to assist DoD planners in alleviating the impact of rail congestion on crisis transportation efforts.http://archive.org/details/annalysisofcomme1094513613U.S. Navy (U.S.N.) author.Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited