35 Years of Intermodal Innovation
The intermodal transportation industry has experienced monumental growth over the last 35 years. Prior to 1989, it was standard for railroad and trucking companies to be fierce competitors. All of this changed when two industry leaders, J.B. Hunt and Santa Fe Railroad (now BNSF Railway), came together to form a pivotal agreement. Their ensuing partnership created Quantum, the first intermodal shipping service that transformed the movement of goods in the modern age.
November 1989
Our founder, Johnnie Bryan Hunt, wasn’t afraid to think big. He created a culture of innovation that grew his small trucking company into a major player in the transportation industry. His reputation for doing things differently spread across the nation. Mike Haverty, president of Santa Fe, admired Mr. Hunt’s innovative spirit. Mr. Haverty saw the potential to harness the cost-efficiency of rail transportation with the agility of highway trucking. He invited Mr. Hunt to join him on a train ride to discuss his idea on November 1, 1989.
“They came up with this idea of putting the trailers on the trains. And look what we have today just because of the friendship of two people that said it can be done when others thought it couldn’t.”
— Johnelle Hunt, wife to Mr. Hunt and co-founder of J.B. Hunt
As the two men travelled west from Chicago by rail, they discovered a shared mission. They both aimed to deliver better service for their customers, to increase efficiency in the national supply chain and explore sustainable shipping alternatives. Working together, they realized, would give them an advantage in addressing these challenges. By the end of their journey, they’d formed an agreement to put J.B. Hunt trailers on the steel highway. A simple handshake marked the beginning of a decades-long strategic alliance that would change the industry forever.
Continued Innovation
35 years later, J.B. Hunt is North America's largest intermodal provider and BNSF is the largest intermodal rail network. Mr. Hunt continued to bring new innovations into the market, such as double-stack intermodal containers, company-owned chassis, and adding onsite terminals and express gates for railway freight.
In 2023, J.B. Hunt and BNSF relaunched our signature service, now known as Quantum, a J.B. Hunt and BNSF service™, with eyes on improved service and increased reliability. The new Quantum service utilizes teams from both organizations working together under one roof at the Intermodal Innovation Center at BNSF headquarters. Our teams provide 24/7 oversight for service-sensitive freight, opening the doors to customers with specialized freight requirements. We lean on our proprietary Customer Value Delivery® (CVD) methodology, where we learn about our customers’ unique needs and develop tailored supply chain solutions to meet their business goals.
J.B. Hunt and BNSF have also recently introduced a Mexico service through the Eagle Pass, Texas, Border Gateway. This route serves key markets in North and Central Mexico, working with BNSF and GMXT (the largest rail provider in Mexico) to offer a best-in-class customer service experience. For customers with sustainability targets, it provides a lower carbon intense option for cross-border shipping.
“What Mr. Hunt and Mr. Haverty created 35 years ago revolutionized the way people thought about moving freight. It was a generational event for our industry, uniting two competing services into one efficient, customer-focused solution. The journey they initiated in 1989 – rooted in innovation, integrity, courage and a commitment to excellence – continues to grow and thrive because both J.B. Hunt and BNSF remain focused on delivering an exceptional intermodal experience for customers.”
— Shelley Simpson, president and CEO of J.B. Hunt
Intermodal remains a cost-effective and sustainable option for shipping freight. However, we understand the importance of ensuring consistency for our intermodal service. That’s why in 2022 we announced our plan to grow our intermodal fleet up to 150,000 containers by 2027. BNSF has also invested more than $11 billion into capital expansion since 2022, including tracks, railcars, facilities, and a historic investment into the Barstow International Gateway in California.
Looking Forward
Quantum is a product that shows the value of J.B. Hunt and BNSF’s deeply integrated systems, allowing us to provide a high-quality service. As we look to the future, both companies are fully aligned in our investments in new technology and multimodal capacity to improve customer experience, drive productivity and strengthen our leadership position in the market. Our joint pursuit to address the needs of our customers remains at the core of everything we do.
“BNSF and J.B. Hunt have long understood that intermodal is underutilized relative to its potential to create value for supply chains. By collaborating together through a foundation we have built over three decades, we’re unlocking that potential for customers to better utilize intermodal to meet their freight needs by bringing more dependability and capacity to the intermodal supply chain,”
— Katie Farmer, BNSF President and CEO
Intermodal has become a significant part of Mr. Hunt’s legacy. In 2016, he was inducted into the inaugural class of the Supply Chain Hall of Fame for this revolutionary work. At J.B. Hunt, we are unwavering in our commitment to drive long-term value for new and existing intermodal customers. Thanks to Mr. Hunt’s visionary leadership, we are equipped to remain at the forefront of intermodal innovation from now into the future.
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