Norfolk Southern – Page 34

Chicago Derailment Under Investigation

December 1, 2007 Railfanning.org News Wire

CHICAGO — The National Transportation Safety Board has dispatched a Go Team to investigate yesterday’s collision between an Amtrak passenger train and a Norfolk Southern freight train on NS tracks south of Chicago. NTSB Rail Investigator Ted Turpin will serve as Investigator-in-Charge and lead the 7-member team. Vice Chairman Robert Sumwalt will accompany the team and serve as spokesman for the on-scene investigation. At the time of the crash, there were 187 passengers and six employees on board the Amtrak train. Most passengers and crew members were unhurt and were later transported to Amtrak Chicago Union Station and on to

Amtrak, Norfolk Southern Trains Collide in Chicago

November 30, 2007 Railfanning.org News Wire

CHICAGO — An Amtrak train collided with a Norfolk Southern freight train this afternoon, seriously injuring five people, officials said. The Pere Marquette was traveling from Grand Rapids, Mich., to Chicago when it struck the freight train in south Chicago at about 11:30 a.m. local time. The Amtrak train’s locomotive derailed, while the rest of the train remained upright and on the rails. The Amtrak train had one engine and three cars. At the time of the derailment, there were 187 passengers and six crew members on board the train. Thirty injuries were reported, including five serious injuries to Amtrak

NTSB Hands Down Three Recommendations in 2006 Derailment

November 27, 2007 Todd DeFeo

The National Transportation Safety Board this week handed down a trio of recommendations in response to a January 2006 Norfolk Southern derailment that injured three people and caused more than $5 million in property damage. First, the NTSB recommended that Class I Railroads “modify, as necessary, your initial and recurrent training and operating rules to emphasize to your employees and the crews of other railroads operating on your territory that any signal that appears to display extra lighted aspects in a signal head should be treated as an improperly or imperfectly displayed signal.” Next, the NTSB recommended that Norfolk Southern

U.S. Class I Railroads Dominate Top 25 in List of Military-Friendly Employers

November 22, 2007 Railfanning.org News Wire

WASHINGTON — America’s freight rail industry dominated the fifth annual America’s Top 50 “Military Friendly-Employers” list published by G.I. Jobs, the nation’s premier career guide for military job-seekers. The magazine named four Class I freight railroads in the top half of the most military-friendly employers for 2007, selecting BNSF Railway as the No. 1 employer of military personnel. Also making the list were Union Pacific, CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern. “The nation’s freight railroads maintain a strong commitment to the men and women who serve our country,” said Edward R. Hamberger, president and CEO of the Association of American Railroads.

Norfolk Southern to Pay $7.35 Million to Restore McKean, Cameron County Waterways; Settle 2006 Train Derailment Case

November 15, 2007 Railfanning.org News Wire

HARRISBURG, Pa. — Waterways and wetlands in McKean and Cameron counties that were damaged in a June 2006 lye spill will benefit from a landmark settlement between the commonwealth, Norfolk Southern Corp. and Norfolk Southern Railway. “We negotiated long and hard to reach this point, keeping in mind the environmental and economic injuries that this region suffered as a result of the spill,” DEP Secretary Kathleen A. McGinty said today in announcing the agreement. “This settlement will help heal the ecosystem and provide the needed resources for nearby communities.” A large part of the $7.35 million settlement — approximately $6.76

Norfolk Southern Begins Work on Heartland Corridor Tunnels

November 15, 2007 Railfanning.org News Wire

NORFOLK, Va. — Heavy machinery grinds away brick, concrete and solid rock as a railroad tunnel near Cowan, Va., gets its roof raised to accommodate taller trains. This is the beginning of a three-year engineering project to increase intermodal freight capacity by raising vertical clearances in 28 tunnels on a Norfolk Southern rail line between the port of Hampton Roads, Va., and Chicago known as the Heartland Corridor. The first phase of the tunnel work began in October. When the project is completed in early 2010, containerized freight moving in double-stack trains will be able to shave off about 200

Norfolk Southern Utilizes Wind to Power Wastewater Treatment Plant in Ohio

October 29, 2007 Railfanning.org News Wire

BELLEVUE, Ohio – Norfolk Southern is erecting a 50 kilowatt wind turbine at its Bellevue Yard in Ohio to power the yard’s wastewater treatment plant. Construction of the turbine is expected to begin in November and be complete by the end of the year. This is one of the first times wind has been used to provide power to a railroad facility in the U.S. “Norfolk Southern is assessing opportunities to utilize alternative renewable energy sources where practical,” said Chuck Wehrmeister, vice president safety and environmental. “We are confident that the wind turbine at Bellevue Yard will be an immediate

NS Ends ‘The Joint Section’

October 26, 2007 Railfanning.org News Wire

Norfolk Southern will terminate its 109-year operating agreement in Ontario, Canada, known today as “The Joint Section.” NS will offer interline rail service for these customers at interchange points in the U.S. for business to/from the following locations in Ontario, Canada: Chatham, Ft. Erie, Thamesville, Walkerville, Welland, Windsor, Niagara Falls, and Port Robinson. NS will continue to participate in joint line business opportunities with our Class I and short line partners located in Ontario. — Special to Railfanning.org News Wire

Norfolk Southern Reports Third-Quarter 2007 Results

October 24, 2007 Railfanning.org News Wire

NORFOLK, Va. – Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) reported third-quarter 2007 net income of $386 million, or $0.97 per diluted share, compared with $416 million, or $1.02 per diluted share, for the same period of 2006. Results included the effects of Illinois tax legislation enacted during the third quarter of 2007 that reduced net income by $19 million, or $0.05 per diluted share. “Norfolk Southern continued to deliver solid results in the third quarter,” said CEO Wick Moorman. “Softness in certain segments of the economy resulted in reduced traffic volumes, which we were substantially able to offset through pricing gains

FRA: Nation’s First Freight Train Equipped with New, Safer Brake Technology Begins Operations

October 11, 2007 Railfanning.org News Wire

WASHINGTON — The first train fully equipped with electronically controlled pneumatic (ECP) brake technology began hauling coal today in southwestern Pennsylvania under a waiver approved by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), announced Administrator Joseph H. Boardman. Norfolk Southern Railway is the first railroad to operate revenue service trains equipped with ECP brakes under the waiver, Boardman said. BNSF Railway also received waiver approval and is expected to operate trains with the new, safer brake technology before the end of 2007. “These railroads understand using ECP brake technology can bring significant safety and business benefits, and I encourage other railroads to