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Railroad Newsline for Monday, March 05, 2007

Compiled by Larry W. Grant

In Memory of Rob Carlson, 1952 – 2006

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RAIL NEWS

EVACUATION LIFTED AFTER 28 RAIL CARS DERAIL IN EAST TEXAS

CHANDLER, TX -- Officials have ended a precautionary evacuation after a train derailment near Chandler, Texas. Chandler is some 11 miles southwest of Tyler, Texas.

Smith County Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Bobby Garmon said after 20:00 Sunday night, people could return to their homes.

All roads previously blocked are now open.

Twenty-eight cars of a Union Pacific train derailed at about 16:00 Sunday afternoon.

As of 19:00, more than 100 homes had been evacuated in an area around the northern tip of Lake Palestine, said Smith County Fire Marshal Jim Seaton.

A Union Pacific spokesman said there was no danger to the public.

“The preliminary information shows there shouldn’t be a need for evacuation, but that’s not our call,” said spokesman Joe Arbona.

Henderson County Sheriff’s Lt. Pat McWilliams had said there was a “large fire with toxic smoke,” but he had not been to the scene of the fire.

Arbona said one of the train’s 115 cars was spilling lube oil. The train was also carrying fertilizer and a mix of other cargo.

There were no immediate reports of injuries, but a Tyler hospital spokeswoman said at least one person was transported from the scene after suffering possible respiratory problems.

Thick, black smoke could be seen from as far away as Tyler.

Greg Morgan, operations manager for Tyler Water Utilities, said material had spilled into the lake. The city shut down its Lake Palestine water treatment plant as a precaution, he said. The city’s other plants have more than enough capacity to handle demand for water in the meantime, he said.

The train was traveling from Shreveport, Louisiana, to Houston, Texas.

In Tyler, Rodrigo Talavera pulled up to Harvey Convention Center in his pickup. Residents near the derailment had been ordered to await instructions at the convention center.

Talavera said he was returning from Dallas to his home near Chandler and was unable to access his neighborhood.

“I’m just wondering where my (19-year-old) son is,” Talavera said. “He doesn’t have no cell phone or anything.”

Few evacuees had made it to the convention center before the evacuation order was lifted. - The Tyler Morning Telegraph

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DEFEATED IN WASHINGTON, DM&E RAILROAD LOOKS TO WALL STREET

MINNEAPOLIS, MN -- Washington turned down the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern railroad's request for a loan for the biggest U.S. rail expansion in decades. Will Wall Street be kinder?

DM&E chief Kevin Schieffer says the railroad needed investors for the $6 billion project even before the Federal Railroad Administration turned down its request for a $2.3 billion loan last week. Now it just needs more. He said it has hired Citigroup and Merrill Lynch to advise it.

"I've been awfully busy since Monday," Schieffer said, though he declined to talk in detail about the railroad's prospects for finding new investors.

"I don't think the fundamentals of it have changed from a structure standpoint," he said. He said he expects some combination of borrowing and equity in the privately held company.

"They have the environmental approvals, all they need is the money," said Frank Wilner, a railroad economist and spokesman for the United Transportation Union.

It's been almost 10 years since the DM&E, a regional carrier with an east-west line across Minnesota and South Dakota, said it wanted to add 260 miles of new track to extend its line into Wyoming coal country. The idea is to create a shorter, cheaper route out of Wyoming's Powder River Basin than the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. or Union Pacific Corp. offered.

The DM&E once hoped to be hauling 100 tons of coal a year by 2007. But getting environmental and regulatory approvals has proven tougher than it expected.

DM&E's search for investors comes at a good time. Railroad valuations are up (Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Union Pacific shares are both close to five-year highs) and there is a lot of private investment money looking for deals. On the other hand, the Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph H. Boardman said in rejecting the DM&E loan that "there remained too high a risk" it wouldn't be repaid -- not exactly a "buy" rating for private investors.

The rejection rattled the share price of DM&E investor L.B. Foster, which makes rail and track supplies and owns about 13 percent of the DM&E. Its stock dropped 29 percent in the week after the loan was rejected. L.B. Foster issued a statement saying it believes the value of its DM&E stake "significantly exceeds" its investment.

"I don't believe the DM&E is starting from scratch in terms of trying to raise private capital for this project," said Robert Damron, an analyst who covers L.B. Foster for 21st Century Equity Research. "It does change the landscape a little bit without the public financing, but certainly I do believe there is private financing for this project."

Much of the attention on the DM&E has been focused on environmental issues and whether its tracks through Rochester are dangerously close to the Mayo Clinic. But its financial impact would be major, too. Utilities are major buyers of coal from Wyoming's Powder River Basin, but two-thirds of coal's cost is transportation. And that is controlled by the BNSF and Union Pacific duopoly on coal hauling there.

BNSF lobbied against the federal loan for the DM&E. Calyon Securities analyst Salvatore Vitale said coal hauling is 20 percent of BNSF's revenue, and most of that is from the Powder River Basin.

"It's your most stable business, and you don't want it upset," he said of BNSF's opposition to the DM&E. "It's where a lot of your pricing power is, and you don't want anybody messing with that."

Utilities would welcome the competition.

Entergy Corp. moved to increase the amount of imported coal it buys after railroad supply disruptions in 2005, but 92 percent of its coal still comes from the Powder River Basin, said Bill Mohl, a vice president who is in charge of purchasing fuel for the New Orleans-based utility.

Mohl has spoken in favor of the DM&E expansion. But he said he couldn't comment on whether the utility would put any money into it.

"Traditionally I think it's fair to say that utilities have really left the transportation piece entirely to the railroad, and left it to them to make the investment," he said.

Considering the eagerness for an alternative to the BNSF and Union Pacific, the DM&E's approval for building the new rail could be viewed as an asset of its own.

"We are the only railroad in North America positioned to go into the Powder River Basin," Schieffer said. "Now it's just a matter of a couple billion bucks." - Joshua Freed, The Associated Press, The Billings Gazette

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DM&E CHIEF SAYS DECISION COULD DERAIL ETHANOL PLANT

BELLE FOURCHE, SD -- Development of ethanol plants west of the Missouri River, including a proposed plant in Belle Fourche, could be hurt if the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad is not able to achieve its proposed expansion and renovation project, according to DM&E president Kevin Schieffer.

Schieffer said ethanol-plant development could be slowed by marketing restrictions due to load limits on current 80-year-old rails roughly between Wall and Pierre.

“Given the condition of some of the track far away from Belle Fourche that would have been repaired by the Powder River project, it limits us to five cars in any train carrying ethanol,” Schieffer said in a phone interview. “When people think about the PRB project in South Dakota, they think about coal, but it’s about bentonite out of Belle Fourche, ethanol out of Belle Fourche, ... grain.”

However, Dale Barker of ProEco, the firm planning the Belle Fourche ethanol plant, said he is less concerned. Barker is a native who returned to develop an ethanol plant after a petroleum industry career.

ProEco’s plans for a new cellulosic ethanol plant hinge on having rail access.

Barker has said that ProEco is working on options for securing enough “feed stock” for the ethanol plant, as well as how the fuel-quality ethanol may be shipped — and where.

The new Belle Fourche-based firm has an agreement with O2Diesel to buy the plant’s capacity.

Currently, O2Diesel provides its patented diesel and ethanol-blended fuel for school buses in Spearfish.

Schieffer said the Powder River Project would allow DM&E to upgrade its rails, improving the competitive advantage for economic development throughout the region.

Since the Federal Railroad Administration’s denial last week of a $2.3 billion loan for the proposed DM&E rebuilding project and extension into the Powder River coal fields in Wyoming, Schieffer said, the railroad has been focused on alternate funding concepts.

He said high-quality rail service offers dozens of options for economic development in the West River region.

A bentonite mine is the terminus of the railroad west of Belle Fourche. The Powder River project would have made a similar southern loop into Wyoming coal fields.

Ring Container is a recent spinoff. It recently brought a plastic-bottle manufacturing operation to Belle Fourche to serve the bentonite industry.

The ethanol project is proposed for the former Busfield Airport property along the same DM&E rails that extend west to the bentonite mines.

Barker and Schieffer said officials for both companies are working together to find the best solutions to bring in feed stock -- corn, at first -- and haul ethanol to the east.

Schieffer said, “Belle Fourche is critically important to us” in terms of current traffic base and also as an example of economic development partnerships that benefit from rail transportation. - Milo Dailey, The Belle Fourche Post/Bee, The Rapid City Journal

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BNSF ISSUES UPDATE REGARDING DERAILMENT AT NOLAN, NORTH DAKOTA

This is an update to the derailment of BNSF Railway Company train S SEALPC1 27, which occurred at 14:00 CT, Friday, March 03, 2007 at Nolan, North Dakota. This location is approximately 40 miles west of Fargo, North Dakota.

Main track was returned to service at 02:45 CT, Saturday, March 03, 2007.

As previously indicated in the first advisory, customers may experience delays between 12 and 24 hours on traffic moving through this corridor. - BNSF Service Advisory

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RAIL TRAFFIC TROUBLESOME FOR AMTRAK

WASHINGTON, DC -- The Capitol Limited, an Amtrak train from Chicago, is scheduled to arrive in Washington every day at 13:30. But frequent rider Edda Ramos knows better than to make plans for the afternoon or evening.

She knows a late arrival -- sometimes by an hour or two, sometimes by seven or eight -- "is the one thing you can count on."

The 764-mile route is among Amtrak's most dismal performers, with just 11 percent of trains arriving within 30 minutes of their scheduled time last year. But the problem exists to one degree or another on the majority of Amtrak routes.

"On-time performance on the railroad in general is the worst I have seen it in my 37-year career," said Griff Hubbard, chairman of the Gregg County, Texas Rail District, "and there's no villain here. It's a capacity issue."

The main reason: In most of the country, the national passenger railroad operates on tracks owned by freight railroads, and the tracks are badly congested.

With freight traffic soaring in recent years, Amtrak's never-stellar on-time performance declined to an average of 68 percent last year, its worst showing since the 1970s. When the routes where Amtrak owns the tracks are excluded, the on-time performance last year fell to 61 percent.

Even the lawmakers who vote on Amtrak's subsidies of more than $1 billion annually have gotten caught in the holdups. Earlier this month, House Democrats traveling to a retreat in Williamsburg, VA, arrived two hours late after getting stuck behind a CSX freight train with engine trouble.

Alex Kummant, who took over as Amtrak's president in September, has made improving on-time performance a priority. A former executive at Union Pacific Corp. — a freight railroad long considered hostile to Amtrak — he says the relationship between Amtrak and the freight railroads is inherently complicated.

"It is an intersection of a subsidized structure with a truly private-sector structure, so how do you coexist?" he said in a recent interview with The Associated Press.

Kummant doesn't blame the freight railroads for most delays, saying they need government help to make the capital investments necessary to cope with soaring volumes.

But passenger advocates and others accuse the freight railroads of failing to live up to their end of a bargain struck in 1970, when Congress agreed to let the railroads unload the passenger service they said was dragging them down. In exchange, the railroads were required to give priority on their tracks to trains run by a new national passenger railroad. Amtrak pays modest fees for use of the tracks.

Amtrak performs far better on the Northeast corridor, where it owns the tracks. Last year, 85 percent of its high-speed Acela Express trains between Boston and Washington arrived within 10 minutes of their scheduled time.

But where Amtrak depends on the freight railroads, the picture is far gloomier, and the Capitol Limited is not even the worst case. The Coast Starlight, which runs between Seattle and Los Angeles, had an on-time performance of 4 percent in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30. For the California Zephyr, connecting Chicago and San Francisco, the figure was 7 percent. In the current fiscal year, the California Zephyr has not once arrived on time.

"The resulting damage to Amtrak's brand, reputation and repeat business is potentially devastating," Amtrak's former acting president, David Hughes, wrote in a letter last summer to the federal Surface Transportation Board.

The freight railroads say they do the best they can and are investing heavily in capacity improvements. In its own letter to the board, CSX Corp. said Amtrak should add more time to its schedules to reflect reality.

Gregg County Rail District board members announced a potential partnership with the Northeast Texas Regional Mobility Authority on Tuesday that could lead to rail spurs connecting Union Pacific Railroad and BNSF Railway Company lines. Board member A.P. Merritt said the spurs could free up freight lines by opening routes to the south of Longview.

"This particular rail spur won't do anything to lessen the current capacity problem because this is a new project," said Hubbard.

There is little incentive for the railroads to help Amtrak arrive on time, because the fees that Amtrak pays to use the tracks are paltry in relation to the billions of dollars the freight lines take in. Nor are there any real consequences for failing to accommodate Amtrak. A bill in the Senate calls for establishing penalties.

In the last fiscal year, Amtrak paid all of its host railroads $90 million — including about $15.5 million in rewards for on-time performance. If Amtrak had performed better, the railroads could have earned an additional $74.5 million in incentives. - The Longview (TX) New-Journal

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KCSR REDUCING TRAIN DELAYS WITH GPS BALLAST TRAIN

The Kansas City Southern international engineering department is currently testing a special train that would reduce work windows for unloading ballast from 24 hours to 45 minutes and subsequently reduce train delays; make it possible for ballast trains to run outside of daylight hours; and improve safety by eliminating the need for a person to walk along side of the ballast train during the unloading process. If the three month test is successful, KCS will procure a Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) Ballast Train for use in the U.S. and Mexico.

For the test, information on KCS' crossings, bridges and switches was gathered and is stored in the train's computer. The computer connects with the GPS, which tells the train how much ballast to unload, and then opens and closes the door to unload the ballast. The test began January 1 and will run through March 15 between Heavener, Oklahoma and Shreveport, Louisiana and between Shreveport and Meridian, Mississippi. - KCS News

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ALL TRACKS LEAD TO GALESBURG

Photo here: [www.register-mail.com]

Caption reads: The former CB&Q Depot on South Seminary Street is seen as it looked around 1905. (Photo courtesy of Galesburg Public Library)

GALESBURG, IL -- It has been 153 years since the Burlington Railroad dispatched its first train out of Galesburg. A few hundred shivering passengers rode flat cars on a round trip between Galesburg and Wataga. It was reported that the majority of riders were younger people who accepted the invitation for the free inaugural ride.

The passenger train, drawn by the Reindeer, pulled away from the Mulberry Street crossing at 1:30 in the afternoon and three hours later, shortly before sundown, returned to Galesburg. At the time the Burlington had a fleet of four locomotives. There was the Roebuck, the Antelope and a switch engine called the Pigeon.

Few early residents could visualize the enormous effect the rail industry would have on Galesburg. In the initial days of railroading, the city had a population of only 1,400. In the early 1900s the system grew to over 600 miles of track in the Galesburg Division. Over 5,000 people were served daily at the passenger depot. The Galesburg Division operated the largest "Hump Switch Yards" in the nation and handled over 15,000 freight cars annually. Over 2,500 received railroad employment, producing a payroll of more than $200,000 monthly.

By the mid-'20s the Burlington Line was handling a freight train every 15 minutes. The volume of traffic necessitated the construction of five additional tracks. A new state of the art depot was constructed on South Seminary Street and a subway was built south of the facility that is still in use today. In 1943, CB&Q President Ralph Budd announced that Galesburg would become the main terminal point for the entire Burlington system.

In 1947 the national rail publication Trains highlighted the fact that tiny Galesburg had become the "major traffic center of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad." The article pointed out that Galesburg was the stopping place for every one of the 31 passenger and 40 freight trains which daily rolled over the six lines radiating to the east, west, north and south.

The Willis Yard south of Galesburg contained the largest individually owned railroad hump yard in the world. The tie-treating plant located between the city and Abingdon served the entire 11,000 miles of the Burlington Railroad in 14 states. Trains magazine highlighted the fact that the 41-stall roundhouse and huge turntable accommodated locomotives up to 125 feet in length.

In 1947 the average stay of a 100 or more car freight train was about two hours. Servicing and changing locomotives was done at the rate of three to five cars a minute. It was estimated that over 6,000 freight cars rolled over the Galesburg humps for classification in every 24-hour period.

Joseph Mills who started as a conductor on the CB&Q Railroad in 1897 recalled the primitive methods used in early rail operations. Mills originally was a callboy who dashed to all parts of the city on a bicycle notifying train and engine crews to report for work. Mills reminisced that when he began the engines had a long pilot bar on the front of the "cow catcher" used to couple cars together. The brakeman would rest the bar on his knee and guide it into position with one hand and with the second hand drop in pins that locked the cars together. Mills pointed out, "If you missed, an undertaker had to wash your face and tie your tie."

Mills explained that freight cars had no air brakes and all braking was done by hand. Brakemen were paid $1.90 per hundred miles and usually worked up to 16 hours daily. Mills illustrated that passenger conductors wore long-tailed coats, balloon pants and carried a long gold chain with a heavy gold watch attached. Several of the more flamboyant drove to the station for work in first class surreys and matched teams of horses. The conductors were considered the aristocrats of railroading.

It is becoming increasingly apparent that the industry that formed Galesburg will likely preserve it. - Tom Wilson, The Galesburg Register-Mail

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A CITY DEEP WITH RAILROAD ROOTS IS BOUND TO HAVE TRAIN ENTHUSIASTS

Cheyenne, Wyoming not only has train-loving residents but also draws fascinated visitors year-round.

Bob Rowland is one of an untold number of local train enthusiasts who call Cheyenne home.

While many live here, others visit the Capital City each year to take in the sites and sounds and the deep history behind the city's railroads.

Every day, around 80 locomotives travel across what the Greater Cheyenne Chamber of Commerce has coined the "steel ribbon."

In fact, local officials say Cheyenne wouldn't be the city it is today if the Union Pacific Railroad hadn't been built here in 1867.

Bob Krieger, business manager for the Union Pacific Historical Society in Cheyenne, said the city was founded by the railroad.

Its expansion was a direct result of the use of locomotives and still is today.

"The railroad also was a large employer for a number of years," Krieger said. "The trains needed a lot of maintenance and people to perform that maintenance."

Krieger said doors to other jobs opened up for those people who worked on trains.

"A machinist is still a machinist," he said. "

The Union Pacific Historical Society, which has 2,100 members worldwide, was formed in Cheyenne 23 years ago by a group of local train aficionados.

The guild will host a convention in 2009 to celebrate its 25th anniversary, Krieger said. Trolley rides and bus trips to see retired steam engines will be offered to the public.

"Our purpose as a society is to gather information on the railroad for future purposes," he said. "People looking for information on the railroads here need to know they have a treasure house just around the corner."

Different from the massive iron horses that pass through the city every day, Rowland's toy locomotives are small enough to keep in his home.

"If they are toys, they're expensive ones," he said. "Some of my cars cost up to $300 to $400 each."

Photo here:

[www.wyomingnews.com]

Caption reads: Bob Rowland looks over some new model train units he has purchased to go with the rest of his collection in his basement. (Photo by Larry Brinlee/Wyoming Tribune-Eagle)

The two models in his basement, or what Rowland has deemed his "playpen," will tell you the same.

Rowland is one of about 30 people affiliated with a local train club that convenes once a week to talk about railroads.

The 77-year-old retired airman and rail buff said his fascination with trains started back in 1946, when he worked for Western Pacific Railroads.

The company was acquired by the Union Pacific Corporation in 1983, according to www.wikipedia.org.

On one side of his basement, a remote-control train set sits unfinished. On the other side is an almost finished power-pack railroad controlled by a switchboard.

Rowland started both two years ago, and he said he hopes to one day have one placed in the Cheyenne Depot Museum.

Bringing in tourists

Aside from model train enthusiasts, locomotives do attract their share of tourists every year, especially international tourists, said Chuck Coon, spokesman for Wyoming Travel and Tourism.

"In the last three or four years, we've had at least a dozen television outlets here from Germany," Coon said. "They are intrigued by steam locomotives and how they contributed to the opening of the American West."

He said tourists notice Cheyenne because the use of rail is so tied to the connection of the city to the rest of the Front Range.

"The train is a fascination for many people," Coon added. "It's intriguing to me too."

Nathan Beauheim, also a member of the local train club, said he has traveled by steam locomotive twice since he came to Cheyenne in 2002 from Albuquerque, New Mexico.

"I've been into trains for years and years and years," he said. "They were something I just had an interest in."

Beauheim said one of his responsibilities as a train club board member is to keep the two engines at Lions and Holliday parks looking good.

In addition, the Challenger No. 3985, which was donated by Union Pacific to Cheyenne, was restored to operating condition in 1981 and has been used in excursion service since, he said.

Scott Phillips, president of the club, said he remembers falling in love with trains when he was 5 years old.

"When I was a kid, my Mom would point out trains on the car ride to my grandmother's house," he said. "I've been interested in trains ever since."

Phillips said club members basically get together to promote the hobby of model railroads.

The group is working on a modular unit right now in hopes of showcasing it publicly around town, Phillips said.

"There are a lot of people in town that I know have been into the hobby in the past or looking to get back into it," he said.

Chances to get involved

For those with a passion for trains and looking to get involved, Pam Crochet, events coordinator at the former Union Pacific depot, said she is always looking for volunteers.

A core of about 12 people currently makes up the depot's volunteer outfit.

The second floor of the museum is expected to open up sometime this spring when some exhibits have been completed, she said.

While nothing has been written in stone, there are still future plans to build a tower at the depot and a skyway that will connect to the roundhouse, where locomotives are worked on, Crochet said.

"There's nothing in writing yet," she said.

While Rowland's hobby doesn't consist of crafting monster-size cars like the Old Number 4004 Big Boy Engine resting in Holliday Park, or Engine 1242 at Lions Park, it's still his hobby.

Forty-two years ago, Rowland manufactured his first model railroad while stationed with the United States Air Force Academy in Alaska.

Three years later, he transferred to Hamilton Air Force Base in northern California, where he built his second model railroad.

By 1969, Rowland packed up the two train sets, moved to Otis Air Force Base in Massachusetts and built his third.

"It's an interesting hobby," he said with a laugh. "It gives me a sense of continual satisfaction, and it's challenging."

All model railroads were sized at approximately 4 feet by 10 feet and 12 feet by 8 feet wide, he said.

When Rowland retired from the military at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in 1976, he decided to make a fourth model.

"A model railroad isn't something you build to run," he said. "It sounds crazy, but the fun is actually building the railroads." - Cameron Mathews, The Wyoming Tribune-Eagle

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AUTO INDUSTRY TURMOIL TESTS NORFOLK SOUTHERN'S RAILROAD NETWORK

HAMPTON ROADS, VA -- One by one, they arrive at what amounts to a big parking lot in Chesapeake. Ford F-150 pick up s, fresh from the assembly line just more than a mile away in Norfolk, ready to be loaded onto trains and big rigs to travel to dealerships throughout the country.

The trucks appear to be in every color of Ford's palette: white, blue, black, red and gray. Some with crew cabs, some without. Four-wheel drive seems to be a popular option. Nearly 1,000 of them, all in nice, neat rows.

Three times a day, five days a week, trains from Norfolk Southern Corp. stop by to haul away bi-level rail cars, each stuffed with eight F-150s.

Photo here:

[media.hamptonroads.com]

Caption reads: Each rail car holds eight trucks. (Photo by Steve Early/The Virginia-Pilot)

A year ago, the trains pulled away a total of 70 to 80 rail cars daily from the 17-acre yard, which is owned by the railroad.

Now the loads are down to about 30 a day as production at Ford's Norfolk Assembly Plant winds down, part of a broad retrenchment by Detroit-based automakers in the face of declining sales.

"In this business, you get used to changes," said Otis Martin, manager of the yard, called the Chesapeake Auto Terminal, as he stood amid the trucks last week.

The auto industry cutbacks can be felt throughout many businesses, from those that supply parts to the plants to those that take away the shiny finished products. Among railroads, which typically carry 70 percent of all new vehicles in addition to moving parts, Norfolk-based Norfolk Southern has the most exposure.

Graphic here:

[media.hamptonroads.com]

Of the four largest U.S. railroads last year, Norfolk Southern derived the highest percentage -- at least 10.4 percent -- of its revenue from shipments of vehicles and auto parts. It connects with 29 auto assembly plants in North America, more than any other railroad, serving as a main rail carrier for Ford, DaimlerChrysler, General Motors and Toyota.

Overall, the company bills itself as North America's largest rail shipper of automotive products.

Despite the automotive industry turmoil, David F. Julian, president of Norfolk Southern's automotive and supply chain services group, remains optimistic about growing that business for the railroad. Some estimates show eighteen million vehicles being made annually in North America by 2015, an increase of about 18 percent from last year, as more drivers hit the roads and existing vehicles are replaced.

"Automotive is very volatile," Julian said, pointing to changing consumer tastes for vehicles. "But that's something Norfolk Southern has successfully dealt with for a long, long time. You have to continually have new plans to stay abreast of the market."

This time, he thinks, is no different.

Serving automobile manufacturers is a tough business.

Many assembly plants have shifted to "just-in-time" production that depends on parts arriving as they are needed, so shipments can't be late. Transporting the finished vehicles from factories to dealers is a delicate operation, especially with mile long trains, as scratches and dents in cargo costing tens of thousands of dollars each just won't do. Also, the automakers' size makes them formidable business partners, even for the country's major railroads.

"You're dealing with the largest manufacturers in the world who carry a significant amount of business leverage," said Julian, who has headed Norfolk Southern's automotive sector for 16 years. "You really have to understand what their needs are... and negotiate successfully with them. It's all hard."

Norfolk Southern has thrived in this environment, increasing its share of the railroad automotive market from fourth to first in the 1990s, Julian said.

How it achieved that strong position is the result of several factors. Norfolk Southern signed a unique contract with Ford in 1996 that put most of the Ford vehicles moving by railroad on its tracks. And its purchase -- along with rival railroad CSX Corp. -- of Conrail in 1997 opened up access to more Midwestern auto plants.

Also, to increase its share of the auto parts business, it developed an innovative system in which trucks make daily runs to pick up batches of parts from suppliers and then transfer the loads to trains for transport to assembly plants. With it, Norfolk Southern captured business that otherwise might have moved solely via truck.

Additionally, Norfolk Southern, with its 21,000-mile rail network blanketing the eastern half of the country, has been selected as the primary carrier by 13 of the past 20 assembly plants built east of the Mississippi River.

Map here:

[media.hamptonroads.com]

Many factors go into where a new auto plant is built, including road and rail access, state incentives and the quality of the labor force. Julian said Norfolk Southern has been able to get ahead by having a team that keeps in close contact with state and regional economic development agencies, which are contacted early on by prospecting automakers. It also maintains a database of about 2,500 available pieces of land along its tracks to help automakers choose sites.

The strength of Norfolk Southern's automotive business is now being tested.

Last year, the traditional "Big Three" automakers -- Ford, General Motors and DaimlerChrysler's Chrysler Group -- all significantly cut their output. North American production of 15.2 million vehicles last year was 3 percent below 2005 and was the lowest number manufactured since 1996, said Donald W. Seale, Norfolk Southern's executive vice president and chief marketing officer.

Ford closed Norfolk Southern-served plants in St. Louis and Atlanta, and General Motors shut down its Oklahoma City plant, from which another railroad brought vehicles to Norfolk Southern to distribute. Until several years ago, Norfolk Southern served 34 assembly plants, five more than it does now.

Increased production from Toyota and other "new domestics" has only partly offset cuts by the Big Three. The Detroit automakers produced a combined 780,498 fewer cars in North America in 2006 compared to 2005, while Toyota and Honda made 329,116 more, according to Global Insight, an economic forecasting firm.

Norfolk Southern moved 561,900 carloads of finished automobiles and auto parts last year, down 8.8 percent from 2005. Yet, because increased demand for rail transportation has given Norfolk Southern strong pricing power, automotive revenue hasn't declined nearly as far. The railroad generated $974 million from automotive shipments last year, slightly below 2005 and just above the amount for 2004. Its total revenue for 2006 was $9.4 billion.

Softness in the automotive industry was one of the main factors cited by Credit Suisse Securities analyst Jason H. Seidl when he downgraded Norfolk Southern's stock in January to "neutral," saying it had reached a "near-to-intermediate term peak." However, most of the roughly dozen other analysts who follow the company haven't changed their position recently.

When auto plants are darkened, Norfolk Southern doesn't lose all of that freight, Julian said. Much of the production of F-150s that occurs in Norfolk, for example, will likely shift to Ford's Dearborn, Michigan, plant, which Norfolk Southern also serves.

"As long as they maintain their market share, they're still going to produce the same number of vehicles," Julian said of Ford.

It's the railroad's parts shipments, constituting about 20 percent of its automotive revenue, that it loses.

Many of the assembly plants being closed are outside the Midwest core of auto manufacturing. The engines, body stampings, transmissions and other pieces that Norfolk Southern ships to Norfolk Assembly, for instance, mostly originate in Michigan or Ohio. Once F-150 production moves to Michigan, those parts would likely move by tractor-trailer trucks, taking business away.

"Unfortunately, this plant -- the logistics, the distance of the markets -- puts it at a disadvantage," Julian said of Norfolk Assembly.

The importance of automobiles to Norfolk Southern is demonstrated by Ford.

Not only is Ford the railroad's biggest automotive customer, but since the formation of Norfolk Southern in 1982, it has been the railroad's largest customer across all of its business units.

Julian said Ford may have slipped from that spot last year because of reduced production. However, 2006 customer rankings aren't being disclosed for "competitive reasons," said railroad spokesman Robin Chapman.

In the long-term contract signed 11 years ago, Ford agreed to ship about 3 million vehicles a year on Norfolk Southern. That's significant, because Norfolk Southern moves about 5 million vehicles annually.

"That was a big jump in market share," Julian said.

The contract called for Ford to build four "mixing centers" that would gather vehicles from different plants and group those heading to common destinations. The centers, each about 250 acres, were built near Fostoria, Ohio; Shelbyville, Kentucky; Kansas City, Missouri; and Chicago to speed shipments from Ford's North American assembly plants -- now numbering 17 -- to final distribution centers and then dealerships.

Julian compared the centers to airport hubs where feeder routes converge. It's an arrangement Norfolk Southern doesn't have with other automakers, he said, although DaimlerChrysler is now testing the concept.

The strategy was to sort nearly all vehicles in the centers. But that's no longer the case. Large metropolitan areas warranted their own trainloads of vehicles direct from the factories, so now roughly 40 percent of Ford's vehicles are processed in the complexes, Julian said.

The agreement expires at the end of 2009, and Julian said talks are under way for a possible extension.

Also looking forward, Norfolk Southern hopes to increase its automotive revenue by attracting more assembly plants to its rail network and by expanding the services it offers, Julian said.

Norfolk Southern, for instance, plans to begin hauling larger trucks, not just cars and pick ups, from factories, Julian said. Such trucks, including the big rigs seen pulling trailers down highways, are too big to squeeze into the multilevel rail cars that carry automobiles and pick ups. So the railroad is developing single-level rail cars to accommodate them.

Seventeen North American plants produce those trucks, he said. "That's a big market." - Gregory Richards, The Hampton Roads Virginia-Pilot

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TRAIN RIDE, TRIO TO STATE CAPITOL IN 1872 DETAILED IN JOURNAL

Photo here: [www.lakesunleader.com]

Caption reads: The Stoutland/Richland railroad train as ridden by W.E. Sharp around 1872, according to facts recorded in his diary. The first railroad in the southern part of our area was in Stoutland in 1869. (Photo courtesy Camden County Museum)

CAMDEN COUNTY, MO -- Within the archives of the Camden County Museum is the notebook diary account of W. E. Sharp. It is a daily account of his first train ride from Richland to Jefferson City, Missouri and his week's stay for his appearance before a grand jury in 1872 investigating William Pennington for counts of mail fraud.

The first and last portion lists his expenses. His railroad ticket from Richland to Franklin cost $6.95. He spent 25 cents in Franklin. He spent 10 cents in Herman. His notebook cost 15 cents. He gave 5 cents to the Catholic Church in Jefferson City and 10 cents to the Methodist Church while in Jefferson City. He bought a box of pills for 25 cents and gave 5 cents to a blind man.

8:19 p.m., Monday, Mar. 4, 1872, finds me for the first time in life on a R.R. train ready for a ride. I had scarcely seated myself when the train was under motion. I had thought I would be at a loss how to act or behave myself in this new situation. But knowing that when we are in Rome we must do as the Romans so I soon decided how to conduct myself. I had a strong desire to look around but seeing the others sitting lazily around I dropped into my seat and did likewise. About 4 a.m. March 5, 1872 found me at Franklin 127 miles from Richland the place at which I first entrusted my mortal frame to a R.R. train.

The train stopped and the conductor yelled 'Franklin.' The original town of Franklin, destroyed by flood, was the official beginning of the Santa Fe Trail around 1821.

I knew this was the place at which I was to stop so stepped off the train. Quite cool down upon the platform so I began to look for a hole into which to crawl, and be sheltered from the piercing wind. My attention was attracted by a red lantern hung out of a door of what seemed to be the depot building. Seeing a big fat man make for the red light I made for it too not noticing that it said saloon, and not depot. But I soon found out my mistake and turned my steps to another door upon which entering found to be that of the Franklin depot. I stalked around until day and then after breakfast until 10 at which time I got abroad the train on the Missouri Pacific Railroad for the city of Jefferson.

This riding on the Missouri Pacific train I found to be something new, instead of jarring along as we had done on the A & P accommodation, this being a mail train thundered along at a fearful rate carrying us up the bottoms and along the banks of the Missouri River just about as fast as I cared about going upstream, passing several stations among which was the nice little town of Washington.

We arrived at Herman. '20 minutes for dinner,' was the cry as soon as the train had fairly stopped. There was a general rush for the door of the cars.

I again went aboard the train which was now crowded with young Fritz both male and female selling cakes and wine to all who would buy. I contented myself with purchasing a pie. After devouring about one third of it, cast it away, concluding that it would not agree with me to take more.

A few hours ride brings us to Jeff City and alighting from the train I met my friend E. W. Craig who escorted me to the court house.

While in Jefferson City Sharp visited the penitentiary, the Armory, the House of Representatives, the dollar store which he describes in detail and the Catholic and Methodist churches. He also fixed a fence for the judge.

Mr. Sharp gives this account when visiting the House of Representatives:

Seating ourselves and opening wide our eyes, we see more than we can account for. The House in front of us is alive with busy men. Busy talking and rattling papers, etc. Directly in front of us at the further end of the room is a kind of pulpit. Above this and highest, which I believe is called the speakers desk is a picture of G. W. (George Washington). Upon this pulpit sits a man they call Mr. Speaker. On either end of the desk in front of him are three large lamps supported by about three feet above the desk by something like a candlestick. Swinging from the top of the room are five bunches of lamps in the form of a ring of marbles. The one in the middle has twelve lamps the other four to six each. In each side of the House are three couples of lamps, making ninety-six on each side. Two fireplaces in front of the lobby, two stoves, four large pictures. Life size General Lyon upon his horse in military uniform.

Sharp concluded his trip and headed back home with the following note: 'The trial is over, William Pennington is set free. How justly I cannot tell.'

Sharp made three trips to Jefferson City for the grand jury. - Norine Albers, The Lake Sun Leader (Serving the Lake of the Ozarks area in Missouri)

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UNION PACIFIC RAIL IMPROVEMENTS HAVE IMPACT ON AMTRAK SERVICE

TEXARKANA, TX -- Union Pacific is in the middle of $11.6 million worth of railroad line improvement projects that affect lines that go through Texarkana, according to Joe Arbona, UP’s regional spokesman.

Arbona said the work includes track and crossing maintenance from Texarkana to UP’s Payne railroad siding near Lodi and Jefferson, Texas. A siding is a point on the line where train cars can be parked while another passes. The line where this work is being done heads on to Big Sandy.

Arbona said improvements to some of the rail and some of the crossing surfaces are nearly completed for this project.

A separate project involves the line going through Texarkana from Little Rock, to Longview, Texas. Improvements on that stretch will be done to the railroad ties.

“We’re looking at replacing something like 40,000 rail ties in that portion of the project,” said Arbona.

He said work crews move quickly and in sections that enable them to cover a lot of territory, allowing freight to move through when the crews are off the track.

Arbona said the point is to have railroad ties that ensure the stability of the track, something the company must do for the 38,000 miles of rail Union Pacific supervises.

Marc Magliari, spokesman for Amtrak, which runs passenger service on UP lines through town, said when construction occurs trains can’t run at normal speeds.

“That’s a come and go thing,” said Magliari about the need for maintenance.

He said some delays have been due to temporary speed restrictions in places near Little Rock affecting some of the trains headed to Texarkana.

He said some delays have been due to temporary speed restrictions in places near Little Rock affecting some of the trains headed to Texarkana. - Aaron Brand, The Texarkana Gazette

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LONGVIEW TRAIN SHOW KEEPS ON CHUGGING

Photo here: [img.coxnewsweb.com]

Caption reads: Jackson Maples, 4, of Fort Worth watches a model train make its rounds Saturday at the Junction & East Texas Train Society Train Show. (Les Hassell/News-Journal Photo)

LONGVIEW, TX -- Model train enthusiasts young and old alike traveled to the Longview Fairgrounds Saturday to attend the annual Longview Train Show. Organized by the Junction & East Texas Train Society, the show celebrates the model train and its hobbyists.

The train society has coordinated and hosted the show for 10 years. Homer Fleischer, show coordinator and president of the train society, said the show was designed for "model railroaders." A variety of vendors sold a variety of items, including models of automobiles, train cars and buildings. Other vendors sold train memorabilia and tools.

Fleischer, who owns Homer's Model Railroad Shop in Longview, said this year's show is the best they have run. He said the show had more vendors than any previous year, and that many new vendors had joined the show. The show also has had "a very good turn-out," he said.

Greg Harrington, 57, of Longview came to the show with a friend and her son. Harrington, who has attended previous train shows, built a model train layout of his own five years ago. He planned to purchase a couple of model train cars and look at the model train layouts on display.

"We like to look at trains," Harrington said.

Robert Jackson and his family share Harrington's interest in trains. The Jackson family traveled to Longview from Dallas to attend the show. The family travels to a number of train shows each year, and they learned of this show through a model train magazine. Jackson said the Longview show was one of the better small train shows he has attended.

Jackson began playing with model trains when he was 5 years old, but as he grew older, he stopped. His interest in building model trains returned five years ago as an activity he could share with his son, Billy. Billy Jackson said he had a table of Thomas the Engine models and that he enjoys going to different shows and seeing trains.

Not everyone who came to the show had an interest in trains. Jerry McKenzie of Longview said he had no interest in trains, but he brought his two young grandchildren to the show to spend time with them. He said his grandson especially seemed to enjoy it.

The business of the show has been generally good for most vendors. Roger Barker of Mabank has attended the Longview show for many years. He said he has had better business this year than in previous years. Barker attends more than 15 shows a year, but he particularly enjoys attending the Longview show.

"We like coming here for the food," Barker said with a smile. - Randy Ross, The Longview News-Journal

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TRANSIT NEWS

REALISTIC, WORKABLE LIGHT RAIL PLAN NEEDED NOW

KANSAS CITY, MO -- With civic leaders wasting time as the clock ticks toward a transit crisis, a replacement for Clay Chastain’s recently passed light-rail plan needs to be drafted at a record pace.

The alternative is too bleak to contemplate. Not only will the bus system be wrecked, but Chastain’s plan will never be implemented, its funding being grossly inadequate. Instead of catching up with more progressive cities, Kansas City will be left with no mass transit at all.

With a crisis upon us, let’s chuck our usual deliberative approach and craft a new plan without the impediment of consultants and regional task forces -- to be as bold as Chastain was -- but to be realistic as well.

First, let’s thank Chastain for forcing us to deal with this. We need light rail. There is no good excuse for not having it. Chastain realized this before others did.

Still, he has no official standing in this city. We need neither to negotiate with him nor to seek his approval. The voters passed a plan. They did not elect a man.

Second, let’s skip time-consuming attempts at regional coordination. It would be nice to have a regional plan comprehensively meeting the needs of the metropolitan area. But we don’t have time for that. This is Kansas City’s problem. Its voters must act before this year ends.

Third, let’s concentrate on what’s necessary, ignoring ornament or frivolity.

The new plan must:

• Include a light-rail line.

• Cross the Missouri River.

• Finance existing bus service.

• Qualify for federal matching funds.

The voters want light rail, not just bus rapid transit service. They are tired of leftover transit hash when similar cities have light rail. Light rail is central to a new plan.

Light rail must benefit the Northland. Note, however, this is not tantamount to serving Kansas City International Airport. The airport link (included in Chastain’s plan) drives costs to exorbitant levels, killing federal support. In crossing the river, the system should serve the everyday needs of Northlanders. The link to the airport must be scrapped for now.

We cannot decimate bus service to pay for light rail. Too many people depend on it. Building a rail system and preserving bus service will require us to be as efficient as possible in both. Here we must ask difficult questions, such as whether bus service should be privatized rather than run by a quasi-governmental monopoly.

The Chastain transit tax is insufficient. We need federal matching grants. The line for federal money is long, and we will have to figure out how to jump this line. Like it or not, our plan must score highly with Washington bureaucrats.

We need to get practical in a hurry. Our system will need to be “ultra-light” rail. Heavy-rail and many light-rail systems have required dedicated rights of way, grade separation, large stations, tunnels and bridges -- all things we don’t have or can’t afford. Instead, we will need to primarily use our streets for right of way, making our system look more like our old streetcar system than many of today’s more expensive rail systems.

Actually, a streetcar-like system has many advantages. It is cheaper. It doesn’t disrupt the pedestrian environment. It is easier to use. It is faster to construct.

We can’t afford to build a new bridge across the river, so the system will need to cross on the lightly used ASB Bridge and travel on Burlington Avenue in North Kansas City. To make the most of it in the Northland, the route should continue straight up North Oak Trafficway as far as we can afford, and there build a park-and-ride facility to alleviate auto congestion crossing the river.

South of the river, it should be as straight as possible and as far south as we can afford. Our suggested route is Grand Boulevard to Main Street, ending at the Country Club Plaza, with future expansion taking one spur east along the Brush Creek corridor, another south to serve Brookside and Waldo, and a third west into Mission.

For now, multiple routes are too expensive. An airport link is impractical. Extension to the Kansas City Zoo is unnecessary. As other cities have seen, a modest initial route is usually followed by continual expansion as the community sees what such a system can do for its vitality.
Finally, gondolas should be floating in Brush Creek, not in the skies over Penn Valley Park.
Broadway should be kept open in Penn Valley. If we want light rail, we need to rid the plan of these irrelevancies.

Regional planning should be left for another day when we aren’t working like mad to avoid a disaster. Commuter rail lines, later. Rapid bus lines to the suburbs, later. We need to replace the Chastain plan immediately and act in crisis management mode -- because that’s where we find ourselves now. - Dave Scott, The Kansas City Star

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MAYOR'S OPPOSITION TO DOWNTOWN CORRIDOR DRAWS CHEERS, JEERS IN SCOTTSDALE COUNCIL

SCOTTSDALE, AZ -- Mayor Mary Manross’ decision to oppose light rail through downtown Scottsdale received mixed reactions Friday, with one City Council member saying she went too far and another saying she didn’t go far enough.

Councilman Ron McCullagh said all options, including light rail through the downtown area, ought to be debated when the council considers light rail as part of its proposed transportation master plan this spring.

“I’m keeping all of my options open. Until we get the comprehensive transportation study ... there’s no point in taking anything off the table,” he said. “That’s not a statement in support of light rail and it’s not a statement against it.”

On the other hand, Councilman Bob Littlefield said Scottsdale residents don’t want light rail at all, but less traffic congestion when driving their cars.

“I’m glad the mayor’s seen the light on light rail through downtown. I think that would be a disaster,” Littlefield said. “I’m against light rail anywhere in Scottsdale.”

Manross announced her opposition to light rail on Scottsdale Road through downtown and Old Town during her State of the City address Thursday.

“The one thing that seems to be controversial is the thought of having light rail going through the core, the heart of downtown. I don’t want to see that happen,” she said Friday. “I think it would be incredibly disruptive and change the character of that area.”

She said other transportation options delineated in the proposed transportation master plan, including light rail elsewhere in Scottsdale, ought to be considered.

“We can debate all these after we have the information,” she said. “I think everything else has to be put out there on the table and analyzed.”

Manross said she doesn’t intend to rule out any other light-rail alternatives, or other mass transit options such as a modern streetcar system or bus rapid transit, until the council has a chance to consider the transportation master plan.

“I’m trying to stay openminded. I just don’t know enough about them,” she said. “I’m not married to any one solution and I don’t have antipathy to any of the solutions.” - Ari Cohn, The East Valley Tribune

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END OF THE ROAD FOR CAR CULTURE?

DALLAS, TX -- As you set out for the office on the average workday, you can safely bet your commute will be anything but predictable. With few exceptions, whether you drive five or 50 minutes, a rush-hour trip within our traffic-choked region promises painfully long delays.

The numbers suggest that things will drastically worsen if our focus remains on the traditional single-minded traffic remedies of more lane miles and massive freeway expansions.

The Dallas-Fort Worth area boasted 3.6 million jobs in 2005. By 2030, studies project the region will employ 5.4 million people. Population, which stood at 5.8 million in 2005, is expected to grow to 9 million by 2030.

As more people move here, road congestion naturally increases because, even with more drivers paying taxes and innovations in transportation financing, we can't build roads fast enough to meet the demand.

To suggest a solution to our traffic woes that depends only on the single-occupant automobile is both narrow-minded and environmentally naive. Add to the mix the fluctuation of the cost and availability of energy, and it becomes apparent that this purported solution is unsustainable and economically risky.

We need a more diverse approach, one that offers North Texans the choices they deserve. Suburban growth is inevitable, necessitating continued roadway-capacity improvements. But mixed-use sustainable development integrated with transportation choices where we can live, work, shop and go to school without relying on automobiles must be part of any region as large as ours.

Forget the myths about Americans being addicted to driving. The facts are that our region is suffering from gridlock and poor air quality. We need a combination of innovative solutions to address these issues.

Fact 1: Our roads are unreliable.

The Achilles heal of the single-occupancy automobile approach is the lack of reliable roadways. They are unreliable because of the frequency of accidents temporarily eliminating critical capacity, creating tie-ups that often deteriorate into frustratingly long delays that cost us money and time with our families.

Congestion in the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington area cost the average driver 35 hours and $592 in 2003, according to the Census Bureau. Roadways still remain the popular mode of travel, even though residents do not wish to increase gas or other motor vehicle taxes enough to build and maintain the needed roads. As in an unfunded pension plan, $35 billion is needed to reconstruct the aging roadway infrastructure in North Texas alone.

Fact 2: Transit is a good alternative.

Nearly half the delay drivers experience is from unpredictable roadway incidents. This is far from the minds of people use the rail. Our transit providers are doing an outstanding job developing alternatives to the automobile.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit is doubling its light-rail network in a project that will extend service to thousands of residents in Dallas and surrounding cities.

The Fort Worth Transportation Authority, or The T -– which jointly operates the Trinity Railway Express commuter line with DART -– plans to offer rail service from southwest Fort Worth to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. And the Denton County Transportation Authority will offer rail service from Denton to the DART station in downtown Carrollton.

North Texans' use of mass transit is increasing, even as gas prices have declined over the past several months. In 2006, the three transit agencies experienced ridership increases of 5 to 13 percent. The popularity of rail in some corridors is remarkable. The North Central Expressway light-rail segment, for example, carries a passenger load equivalent to a four-lane freeway.

A coalition of governing bodies throughout the region is backing the creation of a seamless regional rail system jointly operated by the three existing agencies. For this to happen, other cities along the projected path need to pay in.

An extensive study of funding options determined sales tax to be the best source of revenue. Tax limitations prevent many cities from increasing their tax rates. Legislators have the opportunity this year to allow these cities to join transit agencies anyway.

Fact 3: We deserve choices.

The North Central Texas Council of Governments and its transportation policy body, the Regional Transportation Council, are searching for ways to provide alternatives to automobiles. Our policy ideas rely heavily on the success of sustainable development and creating an environment where residents have greater choice in housing style and location. This reduces the share of residents reliant on their cars to take them everywhere.

Higher-density, more walkable communities are not for everyone. However, successful developments are springing up throughout the region for those who want to live close to transit, shopping and entertainment centers.

Sustainable development is also paying dividends for investors. Addison invested $10.7 million in the Addison Circle project, which had an original land value of $23 million. Today, the same land is worth $213 million. This kind of return cannot be ignored, and the success of Addison Circle has proved that there is a bustling market for sustainable development in certain sectors.

Fact 4: We must improve air quality in North Texas.

North Texas is grappling with a significant air quality problem. The nine-county region is violating the Environmental Protection Agency's standard for ground-level ozone.

The North Central Texas Council of Governments has a comprehensive strategy for reducing emissions from mobile sources. An initiative to solve the transportation problem through single-occupancy vehicles is inconsistent and will not help achieve our air quality goals. Passenger rail is just one element of the plan. It is a critical element, however, because it provides an opportunity to tie land use and transportation decisions together. But we also have found other ways of improving the air we breathe.

We are aggressively promoting programs to reduce pollution from automobiles, large diesel-powered trucks and construction equipment. This includes ensuring that vehicles are running efficiently and exploring cleaner-burning fuels. Many governments across the region have adopted a policy offered by the Regional Transportation Council encouraging cleaner auto fleets.

The region is facing serious transportation and air quality challenges. More roads will help. But they're not always the best solution. It is important we pursue lasting solutions that consider all of the transportation and development options available to us. - Commentary, Michael Morris, The Dallas Morning News (Michael Morris is director of transportation for the North Central Texas Council of Governments.)

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THE END