More Alaska Fun: Miles, Mileages, & Mileage Guides

February 6, 2012 Comments Off

Note: This article is part of a series on changes to the 2012 400NG and International Tender. (To view the entire series of articles, click here.) Please note that these articles are not intended to cover every change made, so TSPs still need to read the tariffs prior to filing rates. Also, these posts are based on our own interpretation of the tariffs, and we cannot guarantee that our interpretation will always be shared by SDDC, the PPSOs, or GSA.

Here are some fun facts about mileage in Alaska:

The total land area of Alaska (63,268 square miles) is larger than California, Texas and Montana combined.
Alaska has 34,000 miles of shoreline.
The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race covers approximately 1,150 miles.

While we wish that the only concerns we had about Alaska and miles were these educational factoids, unfortunately we also need to be able to calculate the intra-Alaska mileage on a personal property move conducted under the 400NG. That task is not as simple as finding fun facts (Thanks, Wikipedia!), and the new 2012 version of the 400NG has added to the difficulty.

New to the tariff this year is a section of Appendix A that details how to calculate the Alaska linehaul charge. While we think it is a good idea to include this information, there is some conflicting guidance in the new section that has caused some confusion.

The first fact we need to know before we can calculate the intra-Alaska miles is which two points are used to determine mileage. The obvious choice would be between the two points that the shipment actually traveled, but of course that would be the wrong answer. In fact, it is not even one of the multiple options given in Appendix A. On page 70 of the 2012 400NG, we find this language which would lead us to believe that the mileage should be calculated between Block 18/19 and actual address (emphasis added):

Intra Alaska Miles (DTOD): 45 (from block 18/19 of the PPGBL/BL to/from actual pickup/delivery address)

However, on the very next page, we find this language which has different instructions (again emphasis added):

Determine Intra-Alaska Linehaul Charge (Only applicable if the mileage is over 14 miles from the AK BPC and the actual pickup/delivery).

This would lead us to believe that the mileage is calculated from the base point city (BPC) to the actual address. The BPC is a centralized city assigned to each Zip3 area. There is of course one other possibility, and that is that you use the BPC to determine if the mileage is over 14 miles, and then if so, use the Block18/19 mileage for the calculation.

Unfortunately, knowing between which points to calculate mileage is not our only challenge. We are also unsure about which mileage guide to use for the calculation. The first quote from Appendix A references “DTOD”, which is an abbreviation for the Defense Table of Official Distances, the mileage guide published by the DoD. However, on page 10 of the tariff, it directs us to use the Rand McNally Mileage Guide for distances in Alaska.

So other than the way to select the start and end points of the mileage calculation, and the mileage guide to use, we pretty much have the intra-Alaska mileage calculation down pat. We have asked SDDC to clarify, so we’ll see if they can clear up some of the confusion. If not, perhaps we will take solace in the fact that Alaska has the longest combination road and rail tunnel in North America, the 2.5 mile Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel.

Do you have any issues calculating Alaska mileages? Do you know any fun mileage facts about Alaska? Use the comments below to share your opinion: