Part-time residents of the Coachella Valley in California who dread the long drive back home have another option starting this month. They can send their cars by train.

New Jersey-based Autolog Corp., which has been running cars up and down the East Coast for more than 20 years, is launching a train service that will connect Palm Springs to the Chicago and Seattle areas. Autolog entered into a partnership with the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway to use their network of tracks to haul cars.

Owner Myron Levine is hoping to garner business from the estimated 100,000 people who live in Palm Springs during the winter. The cost to transport the vehicle in an enclosed rail car will start at $525. "The only other way to move your car is to use independent truckers," Levine said.

Palm Springs customers can drop off and pick up their cars in San Bernardino. For an extra fee, Autolog arranges to deliver cars from the railhead to the Coachella Valley. Levine said Autolog service is still cheaper than independent trucking in many cases, and that trains are safer and faster than trucks.

The trip takes less than two weeks, according to Levine. He said that