The transfer of freight cars and the accompanying waybills between two connecting railroads at a junction point. Interchange rules, governed by AAR circulars, define responsibilities for car condition, billing, and liability. It is the mechanism that enables single-bill, multi-railroad shipments across the North American network.
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.
A railcar that is operating on a railroad other than the one that owns it. Foreign cars generate car hire obligations from the operating railroad to the owning railroad. Railroads track foreign car counts carefully to manage their hire obligations and fleet balance.
A railcar that is currently on the railroad that owns it. Home cars generate no car hire for the owning railroad. Returning a car to its home road eliminates the daily hire expense.
The principal trade and standard-setting organization for the major freight and passenger railroads in North America. The AAR develops and publishes interchange rules, equipment standards, safety standards, and technical specifications that govern how railroads interact with each other. Membership includes Class I railroads, Amtrak, and many regional and short line railroads.
A compensation system under which a railroad pays a daily or mileage-based fee to the car owner when using foreign-owned or privately owned equipment. Car hire rates are established under AAR rules and are intended to recover the owner's fixed and variable car costs. The system balances car supply across the national rail network.