Dwell refers to the average amount of time a railcar spends in a terminal before it’s transported to its next stop. When it comes to dwell, the lower the better. Velocity refers to the average miles per day of a railcar or locomotive; the higher, the better. Both measures are indicators of the efficiency of our rail network. Dwell was at a historic low in 2025, thanks to efforts by teams at our terminals. Merchandise trains can be affected most by dwell improvements. Unlike a unit train where railcars carry the same commodity directly from one origin to destination, merchandise trains are assembled in terminals. They’re made up of single cars with multiple types of freight bound for multiple locations. Here’s how we improved service for these customers last year. In our merchandise train network, we reduced dwell by 13% to historic lows in 2025. Looking at dwell month by month in 2025, we broke dwell records every month. Last year on average, every railcar on our network spent three fewer hours dwelling at a terminal compared with the previous year. Thanks to velocity improvements, we increased miles per day 10% in 2025 over 2024. “BNSF’s service has been consistent and reliable, and clear communication has strengthened our planning and day-to-day operations,” said Ryan Lawler, area president for the Pacific Northwest at Republic Services, which provides sustainable recycling and waste solutions. “We look forward to building on this momentum in 2026.” Velocity is affected by dwell improvements as well because when we improve our capability to move cars through our terminals, we make big gains on the road. For 2025, velocity (in miles per day) increased by about 10% across our network…
