Norfolk Southern

Commentary

‘Where Are The Loads? There Ought To Be Loads’

FINANCIAL EDGE, RAILWAY AGE FEBRUARY 2023 ISSUE: January is always an unusual month. Holiday coziness is quickly exchanged for the realities of credit card bills, a “don’t talk to me about what you did in 2022; what are you going to do for me in 2023?” attitude from employers (apologies to JFK) and a new set of 52 weeks over which to compare railcar loadings. Ask any fan from any football team trying to survive through the NFL playoffs: January is an odd month.

Ahead of future service between Mobile, Ala., and New Orleans, La., Amtrak engineers and conductors will soon begin required “familiarization” trips to learn the route’s physical characteristics.

Transit Briefs: Amtrak, MTA Metro-North, Tri-Rail

Amtrak advances crew training for Mobile-to-New Orleans intercity passenger rail service. Also, Connecticut lawmakers eye electrification of MTA Metro-North Railroad’s Danbury Branch; and south Florida’s Tri-Rail commuter railroad saw January ridership grow 30% over the same month last year.

From Left to Right: PST President and CEO Rushi Patel; MARS Past President Carrie Evans and new MARS President Kathy Bathurst; and Metro Transit Police Chief Ernest Morales III.
  • News

People News: PST, MARS, SEPTA, Met Council/Metro Transit

PS Technology (PST) appoints Rushi Patel President and CEO. Also, the Midwest Association of Rail Shippers (MARS) welcomes new officers and executive director; the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) appoints Ronald Keele new Chief Safety Officer; and Minnesota’s Metropolitan Council (Met Council) selects Ernest Morales III as Chief of the Metro Transit Police Department.

“Our team delivered double-digit percentage growth in revenue, as well as earnings per share and achieved record revenue and operating income for the year," NS President and CEO Alan H. Shaw said.

NS 4Q: ‘Double-Digit Percentage Growth’ (UPDATED, Cowen)

For Norfolk Southern (NS), fourth-quarter 2022 railway operating revenue was $3.2 billion, up 13%, or $385 million, compared with fourth-quarter 2021, a “fourth-quarter record” driven by a 15% increase in revenue per unit, the Class I reported Jan. 25.

NS on Jan. 17 honored 15 customer and supplier recipients of its inaugural Thoroughbred Sustainability Partner Awards, which honor corporate programs in three categories: achieving “significant energy efficiency savings”; implementing “innovations that have significantly contributed to a more sustainable future”; and working to “promote stewardship of the environment.” (Photograph Courtesy of NS)

Class I Briefs: BNSF, CP, NS

Following weather-related service challenges at the end of December, BNSF reports that overall car velocity for the week ending Jan. 17 is up more than 8% vs. last month. Also, Canadian Pacific

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