NEW YORK – The chief financial officers from four Class I railroads say they are enthusiastic about traffic and revenue growth this year as the North American economy strengthens, truck capacity tightens, and trucking rates soar...
http://trn.trains.com/news/news-wire/2018/06/13-railroad-executives-optimistic-about-continued-traffic-growth
Brian Schmidt, Editor, Classic Trains magazine
They may get revenue growth by increasing rates, but their traffic base will stagnate or drop due to the focus on financial performance at the expense of meeting their customer's needs. I speak as a significant railroad customer.
Except for CSX, none of the railroad CEOs or CFOs have a clue what the market needs from them if they want to grow. They are focused only on Operating Ratio and what they call operational efficiency (limited to cost control) to reduce the OR.
MICHAEL KLASS I speak as a significant railroad customer. Except for CSX, none of the railroad CEOs or CFOs have a clue what the market needs from them if they want to grow.
I speak as a significant railroad customer.
Except for CSX, none of the railroad CEOs or CFOs have a clue what the market needs from them if they want to grow.
What is CSX doing differently that makes them know what their market needs from them in order for the company to grow?
They have a CEO with a marketing background that understands that side of teh business growth equation. And he is actually a rather bright person.
I do not in any way believe that your description applies today to either CN or BNSF. I don't think that cutting costs is the priority today with either railroad. I think the priority on both is frugaly investing to stay ahead of traffic increases to avoid gridlock and provide decent service, and also actually attempt to grow the customer base.
If I recall correctly, BNSF is now the largest railroad in the country in terms of total carloads and containers hauled, and they are looking at continued growth. They are one bridge at Sibley, MO short of a completely double-tracked Southern Transcon, and they keep chipping away at more and more double track on the Northern Transcon. They are edging ever closer to having total loads exceed their previous high year back when PRB coal was cranking out 60+ trains a day for BNSF.
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