A hypothesized model of intermodal railroad-truck usage is proposed and tes
ted at the carrier level. Empirical results indicate that a shipper's futur
e usage of a railroad's intermodal service is affected by the shipper's sat
isfaction with, and ability to replace, the carrier. In turn, shipper satis
faction is, according to the analysis, influenced by a shipper's overall pe
rception of the railroad's intermodal service. It is also established that
these overall performance perceptions are driven by shipper perceptions of
communication, quality of customer service, consistent delivery, transit ri
mes, and competitive rates (in declining order of importance). Implications
of the investigation are given for railroad providers of intermodal servic
e, and avenues of research are highlighted for future study.