"The perishable market is one of the fastest growing in the transportation industry," says Steve Branscum, BNSF group vice president, Consumer Products business unit. "As the first railroad to place these state-of-the-art cars in service, BNSF is further illustrating its commitment to the perishable marketplace."

With an interior length of 72-feet, these new refrigerated boxcars have a capacity of 8,000 cubic feet—almost double the capacity of BNSF's existing 50-foot refrigerated boxcars. The boxcars feature a more reliable, fuel-efficient refrigeration system that runs only when necessary. In addition, the new cars use a global positioning system (GPS) to provide precise location information. Further, a separated two-way satellite communications system is able to detect temperature fluctuations and make necessary adjustments.