Railroad and Train News

Archive for the ‘Norfolk Southern’ Category

Norfolk Southern reports positive earnings in 2009 annual reports for stock holders. Wick Moorman (CEO of Norfolk Southern) says that NS “withstood the economic shocks of 2009 to produce good economic results, and I go into 2010 with a sense of optimism for our future prospects.”

Going in to 2010, Norfolk Southern says they have a better understanding of their economic goals, and can act accordingly. They believe the company’s progress in safety and service, disciplined cost control, and investments in key projects, with aggressive pursuit of new business opportunities are important keys in continued growth.

Moorman says that Norfolk Southern has “made significant gains in each of these areas, and these same strategies will drive our continuing success in 2010 and beyond. While the short-term economic outlook remains somewhat uncertain, the longer-term prospects for Norfolk Southern and the railroad industry remain very bright.”

Norfolk Southern appears to be going into 2010 with positive momentum. Their traffic levels increased in both the third and fourth quarters of 2009 due to cost efficiency, and they are positive they can continue this trend into 2010.

Toyota has recently awarded Norfolk Southern with the President’s Award for Overall Logistics Excellence. This award is the highest given by Toyota in the area of logistics providers. This is the seventh time Norfolk Southern has received this award since 1996. The award was given based on the criteria of customer service, on-time performance, and quality.

A representative of Norfolk Southern said that they “remain committed to continue meeting Toyota’s high standards for excellence by providing safe, damage-free, on-time service”.
Norfolk Southern transported roughly half of a million Toyota vehicles in 2009.

Southern Railway was a collection of nearly 150 predecessor lines that were combined and reorganized since the 1830’s.
Southern Railway was one of the first railways in many areas of modernization including, but not limited to dieselization and shop and yard modernization, to computers and the development of special cars and the unit coal train, Southern definitely was a railroad that was on the cutting edge of change, earning the company its catch phrase, “The Railway System that Gives a Green Light to Innovations.” In later years the slogan could be seen on most of its boxcars, but changed slightly to read “Southern Gives a Green light to Innovations.” In the early 1960s, a popular steam locomotive excursion program was instituted under the presidency of W. Graham Claytor Jr. The steam program survived the merger which formed the new Norfolk Southern Railway in 1982, but was finally discontinued in 1994.

Please click on the link to the right side to see the complete gallery of photos from the Southern Railway. Below are some samples from the gallery.

The following photos are from the collection of Gary Morris by permission.

New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

Peachtree St Station, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

The Erie-Lackawanna Railroad was created in 1960 as a result of the merger between the Erie Railroad and the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. The two railroads came together to stave off the inevitable fact of bankruptcy and demise. For a brief fleeting moment, it looked like maybe they might actually be able pull the venture off and create a profitable railroad. With the increase in interstate trucking that caused a decline in rail shipments, an economy that was faltering and the final blow of hurricane Agnes in 1972, the railroad was doomed for failure. On April 1, 1976, the Erie Lackawanna became part of the now defunct Conrail system. The Erie Lackawanna still exists only in parts, as Conrail removed much of its trackage and buildings. What remains of the Erie Lackawanna today is operated as part of Norfolk Southern and CSX.

Please click on the link to the right side to see the complete gallery of photos from the Erie Lackawanna Railroad. Below are some samples from the gallery.