Railroad News

Norfolk Southern Corp. will pay nearly $500,000 to 2,086 African-Americans as part of a settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Labor to resolve allegations of race-based hiring discrimination, federal officials announced yesterday.

The case involves an NS business unit in its engineering department, Maintenance of Way No. 34, which entered into the agreement with the department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). NS is a federal contractor that has had more than $10 million contracts with the Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of the Navy, U.S. Department of Air Force and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Services.

Robert Martinez, Norfolk Southern Corp's. vice president of business development and real estate, will be in China this week to meet with business leaders who are considering locating their manufacturing plants in the United States, NS announced yesterday.

Martinez plans to meet with a range of Chinese companies, including manufacturers of automobiles, tires, chemicals, tissue and metals.

Norfolk Southern Corp. subsidiary Thoroughbred Direct Intermodal Services Inc. and transportation management software provider MercuryGate International Inc. have formed an integration partnership that will allow clients to gain access to the Modal-X web-based portal, MercuryGate announced Monday.

Modal-X provides instantaneous door-to-door intermodal rates for transactional freight opportunities.

Norfolk Southern Corp. wouldn't work with the Great Lakes Basin Transportation Inc.'s (GLBT) proposed freight-rail line that would bypass the congested Chicago area, according to a letter the Class I filed last month with the Surface Transportation Board (STB).

The STB has been accepting comments and holding hearings about the GLBT's proposal to construct a 278-mile freight-rail route around the Chicago area, which the company has stated would help to speed up freight transportation and provide additional capacity for growing rail traffic.

Norfolk Southern Railway late last week unveiled its new Safety Train and website to help educate first responders across its network on potential rail-related incidents, the Class I announced late last week.

The train and website are part of NS' Operation Awareness and Response (OAR) program, which was launched last year to improve relationships with first responders by providing classroom, web-based and field training on hazardous materials transportation.

Norfolk Southern Corp. posted strong first-quarter 2016 results yesterday, with profit soaring 25 percent to $387 million and diluted earnings per share up 29 percent to $1.29 year-over-year.

The results demonstrate "significant progress" in the company's five-year strategic plan, said NS Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer James Squires.

Norfolk Southern Corp. will trim 135 positions and reduce operations at its rail yard in Knoxville, Tenn., effective May 1, the Class I announced yesterday.

The action is in response to lower traffic volumes and is part of NS' ongoing five-year strategic plan to improve efficiency, lower costs and support long-term growth, according to an NS press release.

Norfolk Southern Railway has presented 60 customers with its Chemical Safety Award for safely transporting hazardous products on its rail lines in 2015, the Class I announced earlier this week.

Last year, the award-winning companies delivered 224,660 carloads of chemical products that the federal government regulates as hazardous, NS officials said in a press release.

Norfolk Southern Corp. yesterday unveiled its annual report online, noting "early accomplishments" of the Class I's recently announced five-year strategic plan to drive growth, streamline operations and improve profit.

In his first annual report letter to shareholders since he became chief executive officer in 2015, President and CEO James Squires wrote that the railroad "has taken decisive and deliberate action to capitalize on significant growth opportunities within our unique network."

Norfolk Southern Corp. will hold its annual meeting May 12, the Class I announced today in a notice filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and in a letter addressed to NS employees.

At the meeting, NS shareholders will get the opportunity to vote whether they want the company to engage in merger discussions with rival Canadian Pacific.

Norfolk Southern Corp.'s board has elected Amy Miles to serve as chairwoman of the board's audit committee, effective at the corporation's 2016 annual meeting.

Miles will succeed Karen Horn, who is retiring from the board. She has served as an NS director since 2014 and will continue to serve as a member of the board’s finance and risk management committee, according to an NS press release.

Norfolk Southern Corp. has named Ann Adams vice president human resources as of April 1.

Adams will succeed Juan Cunningham, who retired earlier this year, according to an NS press release.

Norfolk Southern Corp. will spend $8.2 million to expand its corporate headquarters in Norfolk, Va., as part of a plan to consolidate its corporate offices in Norfolk and Atlanta and close its Roanoke, Va., office building, Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe announced late last week.

With the expansion of the NS headquarters, the Class I will add 165 employees to the Norfolk facility, according to a press release issued by McAuliffe's office.

Norfolk Southern Corp. announced yesterday that it would consolidate from three operating regions into two segments as part of a previously announced five-year strategic plan to cut $650 million from annual expenses by 2020.

The consolidation, which will take effect March 15, will make the Class I a faster and more profitable railroad, said Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Mike Wheeler in a press release.

Norfolk Southern Corp. assisted 93 facilities in locating or expanding business along its rail lines in 2015, resulting in an investment of $4.2 billion by NS customers, the Class I announced yesterday.

The customers' investments are expected to generate more than 85,000 carloads of new rail traffic annually, NS officials said in a press release.

NS posted net income of $361 million, or $1.20 per diluted share, for Q4 2015, down nearly 30 percent when compared with $511 million, or $1.64 per diluted share in fourth-quarter 2014. Analysts expected NS to earn $1.23 per share for Q4 2015.

Railway operating revenue for the quarter totaled $2.5 billion, down 12 percent compared with the year-ago quarter. Income from railway operations fell 28 percent to $642 million compared with Q4 2015.

Effective Feb. 1, Norfolk Southern Corp. will consolidate its Virginia and Pocahontas divisions to form a new Pocahontas Division, with its headquarters in Roanoke, Va., the Class I announced yesterday.

The consolidation is part of the company's efforts to improve operating efficiency and support long-term growth, according to an NS press release.

Industry organizations that represent major customers of Norfolk Southern Corp. have asked the Surface Transportation Board to reject Canadian Pacific's hostile takeover bid, according to the Reuters news agency.

Reuters reviewed copies of the letters, which have not been made public. Sent last month, the letters revealed customers' concerns over CP's cost-cutting plans, the impact on service and the potential for higher prices for customers, the news agency reported.

[Editor's note: This story has been updated to include CP's response, which was issued this afternoon.]

Norfolk Southern Corp.'s board has unanimously rejected Canadian Pacific's latest merger proposal, NS officials announced today.

The Andersons Inc. announced yesterday that it will begin an expansion of its ethanol facility in Albion, Mich.

The expansion project will double the facility's capacity, Anderson officials said in a press release. The facility is served by Norfolk Southern Railway.