Re: PC: RE: NS?...CSX?...PC!

[Evil Mike <evillmike@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Well I got my info from Eastern Rail News.  Here is the article as posted.  
It says that more than 1/2 the shipments were pulled and that not some, its 
most.

UPS JUMPS SHIP; OTHER SHIPPERS HAVE SOME UNDERSTANDING

One of the nation's largest rail shippers said Tuesday it has decided to 
pull more than half of its daily traffic off
trains run by Norfolk Southern Corp. and CSX Transportation Inc.

Two weeks in to the breakup of Conrail by those railroads, service delays of 
three to 12 hours on those railroads
have prompted United Parcel Service to temporarily divert some of the 
trailers it moves by rail to truck,
spokesman Norman Black said.

"We're going into week three and we're still not seeing any improvement,'' 
Black said. "Every train on both lines
is running late, and some of them substantially late.''

Neither railroad had promised that the division of Conrail would be 
problem-free; however, both had hoped that
service would be better than it is after two weeks. Computer glitches and 
other problems have backed up both
rail systems, causing delivery delays and some rail cars to be misrouted.

If these problems get compounded and delays mount, the economy could suffer 
and the entire rail industry could
face a new round of regulation by the federal government.

July is currently the projected target to have everything straightened out 
on both roads, but July is too long to wait
for Atlanta-based UPS. "We have to worry about the service promises we have 
made to our customers,'' Black
said.

UPS's decision will have more of an impact on CSX than Norfolk Southern. Dan 
Murphy, a spokesman for CSX
Intermodal Inc., which manages UPS' traffic for CSXT, said the diverted UPS 
business represents about 10
percent of its intermodal business on the former Conrail system. "UPS is the 
most-demanding of customers,
and you can be doing pretty good and still not be up to their standards,'' 
Murphy said.

Most of CSX's problems are centered on Cleveland, the crossroads of its two 
principal East-West routes,
Murphy said. "When we finally solve Cleveland, we will have solved our 
biggest problem,'' he said.

Norfolk Southern spokesman Frank Brown said the railroad continues to give 
the highest priority to UPS and
other premium customers. "We regret any inconvenience that delays have 
caused our customers,'' Brown said.
"We are not satisfied when customers are disappointed.''

Service delays on Norfolk Southern did cause Ford Motor Co. to close two 
plants last week, but for only an hour
or two, said Ford spokesman Ron Iori. The closings hit Ford plants in 
Buffalo, N.Y., and Oakville, Ontario, when
parts shipments were delayed, but "at the end of the day, it's nothing 
significant to us,'' Iori said. "Overall, it's not
been perfect, but we're working through it with Norfolk,'' he said.

Such customer reaction is typical, Manetta said. Most may not be happy, but 
they are at least understanding of
the difficulties of a startup, he said.


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