After the grain is transported from the farm to a local elevator via truck, the grain remains in storage until the elevator consolidates enough grain to fill an ‘order’. A shuttle service order is typically between 90 and 120 carloads of grain, whereas, a conventional service order ranges from a single carload to 55 carloads. After the elevator consolidates enough grain to fill an order, railcars arrive and move the grain from the local elevator to the export elevator over the rail network. Grain railcars traveling via conventional service are processed at classification yards on the rail network, whereas, shuttle trains bypass classification yards and travel directly on the rail network from terminal elevator to export elevator. Bahizi, in a USDA report (U.S. Department of Agriculture, 2014), conceptualizes the grain supply chain before and after the introduction of shuttle trains and terminal elevators in a manner that is consistent with Fig. 1.