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OK, so some of you might have wondered where I was while this long discussion was raging. I have been out "Turning, burning and earning" (to the non-rails, that means working). Although not entirely working on my rest, things have been busy of late as NS benefits from the CSX and it's recent service issues. I don't have a lot of time now as I really need some sleep so I won't pretend to respond to everything said here. I will hit just a few high points. 1. Call me a dreamer, but I can't agree with everything in Mr. Hemphill's article. Short lines will manage to survive so long as there are small communities and industries that need rail service. Even now, the forces of legislative muscle that have historically supported shoirt lines are gathering. They gain force with each manufacturing job lost to overseas competition. As always, these forces were never truly the short lines themselves but the customers and constituents themselves. 2. The Kansas DOT study mentioned above by Mr. Hemphill is indeed powerful as is the endorsement of freight rail by AASHTO and other government groups. It demonstrates the futility of trying to have a truck perform a train's job. 3. MC. On many things I agree with you, especially open access. It won't work, the British example only illustrates some of the problems with it. The heart of open access, splitting of the essential functions, creates a divergence of responsibility that cannot be overcome and results in a downward spiral of maintenance. Our friend "Limp" is merely spoiling for a fight. He seems to think that price cuts attract customers, that tells me how little he knows about our industry. Any competitive advantage that those shippers get from competition will go to their pockets, not to keep railroads solvent. 3. MC. I can't agree with you about operating people knowing nothing about track and structures. Having done some of both on short lines the best short lines are where the people work together well. Unfortunately, many track folks I have met are much better at the hands on than at the paper aspect of railroading. Turn them loose as management and you have a major mess. Operating people don't know track well, but they can learn when management structures it so they need to. And believe it or not, many track guys can learn to run on a short line and do pretty well at it. Anyhow, I'm too tired and showing as second out now, so it's bed time. Peace. LC
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