Q. How do I ship to Alaska?
A. Easy! Call Roadrunner and tell a customer service representative that
you need to ship freight to Alaska. All we need is a standard bill of lading
which includes the consignee, city and zip code. Freight can move prepaid to a
destination, collect to a destination or prepaid to Tacoma and collect beyond.
With Roadrunner, there will only be one invoice from the point of pickup in the
Lower 48 to the delivery destination in Alaska.
Q. How does my freight move to Alaska?
A.Roadrunner offers two sailings per week. To ensure that containers will make it
on scheduled vessels (Wednesday and Friday) we load our containers on the same day as
sailing. All less-than-container loads (LCL) go directly to the container freight
station (CFS) which is at the Port of Tacoma. At our CFS the freight is consolidated
and carefully packed into ocean containers. It is then delivered to the ship for
the 1,500 mile voyage to Anchorage. Once ships arrive at the Anchorage Port,
containers are pulled as soon as they become available. We then schedule
delivery appointments with consignees and deliver the freight to the final destination.
Q. How long does it take to ship to Alaska?
A.Shipments from Tacoma, Washington to Anchorage, Alaska transit time including
delivery to consignee is five to seven days. For all other points in Alaska delivery
includes one more day except to Prudhoe Bay which takes two additional days.
Q. How are shipments rated going to Alaska?
A.Shipments are rated based upon weight generally and sometimes cubic measure.
The Lower 48 truck portion (origin point to our container freight station in Tacoma, WA)
is rated according to weight.
Q. How do I calculate the volume of a shipment in cubic feet?
A. Step 1: Measure the length, width, and height of the shipment in inches.
Step 2: Multiply length x width x height.
Step 3: Divide the result by 1728 (the number of cubic inches in one cubic foot)
Example: 12” x 12” x 12” divided by 1728 = 1 cubic foot.
Shipments with density exceeding 45 pounds per cubic foot are rated at 1 cubic foot per 45 pounds.
Q. What kind of invoice will I receive?
A. Roadrunner provides a single invoice for the entire move detailing the following:
- Mainland U.S. freight charges to our CFS in Tacoma, WA
- Ocean charges from Tacoma Port to the Alaska destination
- Bunker fuel surcharge
Q. How do I get a freight quotation and what information is needed?
A. Contact your local Roadrunner customer service center, and provide the following details:
- Origin and destination cities and zip code
- Freight description, commodity, classification and weight
- Any other special details (hazardous materials, inside delivery, lift gate, military or residential etc.)