The invoice issued by a railroad to a shipper or third party for transportation services rendered, including linehaul, fuel surcharge, and any applicable accessorial charges. Freight bills may be prepaid (paid by the shipper at origin) or collect (paid by the consignee at destination). Freight bill auditing is a significant function in large shipping operations.
The primary shipping document that serves as a contract of carriage between the shipper and the railroad, a receipt for the goods tendered, and sometimes a document of title. The bill of lading describes the commodity, weight, origin, destination, routing, and any special terms. It is issued by the railroad or its agent when freight is accepted for transportation.
An internal railroad document derived from the bill of lading that travels with or ahead of a car and contains all information needed to route, classify, and deliver the shipment. The waybill is the operational document used by railroad employees to handle a car through the system. It may be electronic in modern railroad IT systems.
Additional fees charged by a railroad for services beyond the basic point-to-point transportation, such as reconsignment, storage, demurrage, special handling, or fuel surcharges. Accessorials can significantly increase the total cost of a shipment above the base linehaul rate. Shippers should review tariff schedules carefully to understand all potential accessorial exposure.
An additional charge assessed on top of the base freight rate to recover fluctuating diesel fuel costs, typically indexed to the weekly U.S. on-highway diesel fuel price published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Fuel surcharges are applied as a percentage of the linehaul rate or as a flat amount per car. They became standard after fuel price volatility in the early 2000s.