CSX Acquisition of Pan Am Railways

It's not like Selkirk hasn't bogged down before when new operational changes affecting labor were implemented.

The thing about PSR, like most railroad behavior, is that it is strategic and at CSX has provided demonstrable growth in Selkirk et al in the steel, energy, paper, food/beverage and intermodal markets leading up to the pandemic as well as an ability and justification to purchase Pan Am in furtherance of pursuing growth. Most importantly, PSR has made CSX revenue adequate with critical long-term healthy investments in infrastructure and equipment taking place.

Funny thing is that ultimately the strategy of Harrison's derided PSR is no different than the strategy of Hagen's lauded Conrail Quality, just very different approaches and tactics in very different times.

As someone who rode that crazy rollercoaster of carrier operations during the tremendous uncertainty of a 100-year pandemic 1H2020, it's full-on Monday morning quarterbacking from the vantage point of an easy chair to now judge their behavior: in fact I'm surprised looking at the numbers that, to their credit, railroad managements didn't dig deeper. The Great Resignation goes far beyond railroads with service issues occurring across all transportation modes and amongst supply chain providers. But, really, what else could we expect from an unanticipated disruptive 100-year pandemic?

We are up to 10 eastbound manifests tied down in Buffalo (one in Batavia) according to the Fairport NY Live cam train log. Four M560's and several M364/368's that have been sitting there for days.

QB 52.32 wrote: ↑Sat Aug 27, 2022 1:38 am The thing about PSR, like most railroad behavior, is that it is strategic and at CSX has provided demonstrable growth in Selkirk et al in the steel, energy, paper, food/beverage and intermodal markets leading up to the pandemic as well as an ability and justification to purchase Pan Am in furtherance of pursuing growth. Most importantly, PSR has made CSX revenue adequate with critical long-term healthy investments in infrastructure and equipment taking place.

Growth for whom? The shareholders? Looking at strictly carloads for the past decade, they are trending even or slightly down. It's easy to say you're growing when there has been slash and burn to get the OR down. Can only go up from there.

i knew you'd see it my way some day. what csx loses in traffic one day it makes up by jacking up the rates of the remainders tomorrow. it's called growth through reduction.

There are several small new customers popping up here and there over the last few years (e.g., Haverhill, Taunton, Leominster, Enfield, along Southcoast Rail, etc.). A few cars here, a few cars there, and you got a train. I have watched some mighty long (even DPUed) CSX and PAS trains running through Massachusetts lately on YouTube and have to say New England railroading looks pretty healthy after years of decline. Surprisingly even boxcar freight looks really strong. I think things are looking up for New England rail freight and CSX with this purchase. I just hope they have the capacity to support growth as it comes.

newpylong wrote: ↑Sat Aug 27, 2022 2:36 pm Growth for whom? The shareholders? Looking at strictly carloads for the past decade, they are trending even or slightly down. It's easy to say you're growing when there has been slash and burn to get the OR down. Can only go up from there.

The goal is strategic growth for everybody! -and do not overlook the most important thing PSR has provided CSX that its regulators even recognize as being the most important thing for a healthy railroad and with that, the prospect for the kind of growth vested and emotional interests want for the industry, including buying and investing in Pan Am and half of Pan Am Southern. But, you can't avoid, even if you don't like it and it's disproportionate, growth for the investors because they are the owners and railroads need their capital. To isolate and overreach simply targeting only the railroad industry within this reality runs some serious strategic risk.

For those vested and emotional interests that want railroad volume growth beyond simply revenue growth through pricing power, PSR strategically offers that through greater efficiency and improved reliability. You have to disaggregate CSX's market to understand what's been going on, most notably with impactful decline in coal, but also downward trend in carload driven to a large degree with an inability to meet the marketplace's most important need for reliability. Even for the highly-competitive intermodal market, with a variety of submarkets, competing against those that can innovate quickly and with resources flowing to potentially give them watershed productivity increases, PSR provides necessary cost reduction and reliability where it is appropriately needed within the submarkets.

I think your "slash and burn" take is an over reach. Of course, there's debate about labor and specifically operating labor that goes to "slash and burn", especially in light of a major disruptive 100-year pandemic. While I am completely empathetic with the increasing huge demands made of railroad operating crafts, objectively when looking at the bigger economic, political, and technological world, to the extent they can win the war and not simply a pyrrhic victory they'll need to recognize the bigger trends and meet management on cooperative and collaborative terms.

Application of PSR principals at CSX has made them strategically healthier and gives them a strategic shot at revenue-through-volume growth, including in their ability and justification to purchase Pan Am and half of PAS. Without it, doubtful that would be the case. And leading up to the killing frost of the pandemic, there was the early shoots of new overall growth with surviving growth in the New England market.

I have been told that there was a G&W passenger train in pasland last night.

The NS Geometry train came east across PAS from Mechanicville overnight 8/31/22. Sorta looks like an inspection train with its observation car trailing behind the "Brick".

As if the CSX one didn't do a number on the speeds on PAS anywaylol.

now as i piece the two passenger trains together and seeing as G&W and NS are all in the pas family these days, could it be that that the ns geometry train is in fact being led by a G&W family locomotive?

No, they are not in the picture yet; there has been no change in operators of PAS.

I guess the Geo train was capped with MEC 5946 at E Deerfield this morning before heading east.

Perhaps NS & G&W want to identify any problems before G&W takes over that PAR/CSX should have fixed already, and also before the ground freezes.

CSX doesn't need to fix anything that they don't agree to. All PAS maintenance/upgrades are split 50/50 between NS and CSX. If there is disagreement it goes to arbitration. Seems that CSX does believe that the track should be class 2. Other than that I don't see them spending any more for upgrades on a line they hope to sell.

BandA wrote: ↑Thu Sep 01, 2022 2:43 pm Perhaps NS & G&W want to identify any problems before G&W takes over that PAR/CSX should have fixed already, and also before the ground freezes.

As the 50% owner of PAS since 2009 NS knows full well what the issues are. They've had ample time to take action if they disagree with how the other owner (PAR) or the carrier (ST) have been performing. CSX is not obligated to single handedly fix whatever messes have been brewing on PAS.