Things must be looking up for the railroads

I've seen the GE commercial, BNSF sponsorship of the News Hour on PBS, the CSX, NS and UP commercials over the past year.  You can even toss in the occasional Amtrak commercial, too.

It doesn't hurt to advertize.

Interestingly enough, only the UP TV ads don't show a train....

Rusty

Yes I saw the BNSF commercial as well as one from CSX...I haven't seen the U.P. commercial yet....some advertising $$$ is very good to see IMHO.

I can't remember seeing any commercials as a kid. The NS commercials were a first for me.

David

I don't remember any either...my father said he remembers these...from where I do not know...   Anybody else remember these?

Or maybe this one???...I know I don't.....Must have been busy playing with my trains then..

I recognize the UP's increase in rail traffic these days. It also includes NS, CSX and what have you although I have NO idea if these were crews with a UP Pilot or rented horsepower engine/pool power.

In the mix of trains that pass daily and nightly, they have been running some new tankers as unit trains hauling Ethanol. At least I think that is the stuff.

The other thing I noticed is a staggering number of rolling stock lettered for owners I have no clue without a updated Reporting marks information.

And finally, railroads have been leaving the Graffiti alone on cars where the painter has carefully duplicated the necessary data and number of the car. Quite frankly some of the stuff has gotten quite good and misdirected talent.

Although the traffic did not have the 24/7 intensity of the 2003 war effort it's still doing rather well.

Those tankers may be carring CRUDE OIL.  Depending on where you are, because of fracturing, they are unit oil trains in the Dakatas, and along the UP Sunset Route between Harwood and Houston TX.

If our have the haz-Mat resomse book, and can get the UN number, you can figure out what is in the car.  The number is usually in the diamond placard located near the ladder, and the car ends.

GN and BN has supported MN Public TV for years.  So BNSF is nothing really "NEW".

I think the 4 digit number was 1987. I received some training and have experience with Hazmat. Thank you for the welcome reminder... I totally forgot about that little tidbit.

To you Engineers, those tanker cars must really exert some force on you from the weight of the liquids in the whole train. I recall from my milk hauling days occasionally you had to allow the truck to drift a bit to dampen the milk before it beats you up.

One other note, there has to be a Tanker Operation somewhere around Arkansas, there are DOZENS of fresh new tank cars day in and out.

1987 is most likely Ethanol, but there are a few other chemicals it could be.

I have applied to many of the railroads for employment..Electronic communications/Signal ..while I was laid off..now that I am back to work they are contacting me for interviews.. I cannot go..I work out of a Union and every 75 hours gets me 30 days of health and welfare benefits for my family, which I do not lose when I am laid off..So yes the railroads are doing good  but not for me ..sucks too because I would love to work on the "real ones"  I was asked why I have model trains and I replied "because my wife won't let me have a real one" 

I had an opportunity in 95 to go to work for Norfolk Southern  but the job was in Decatur IL..I remember it well because I was the only one in shorts, a wife beater T shirt and baseball cap, having just left the hospital where my daughter was born, who was offered a job..if I had known my wife would be wrongfully terminated after 1 year of disability from her employer( a major communications company..that breaks labor laws and abuses employees on a daily basis)  2 days later, I would have taken it...$3600 a month to start...We had just bought our house  and I had to live with in 35 miles of the job...have you ever been within 35 miles of Decatur IL?   They do not call it little Chicago for nothing...O well live and regret....

Funny how things turn out.
I put in for a job at N&W in the signal department and got it but it was at Lamberts point workin on the coal elevators. You left Roanoke on Monday and returned on Thursday evening. I didn't want to work out of town but couldn't turn down the job.
I thought if I could get my foot in the door somehow I could get back to Roanoke.
My soon to be supervisor called Friday evening and told me where to meet them Monday mourning . Fifteen minutes later the lady from human resources at Appalachian Power called and said there was a linemans job open in Roanoke and it was mine if I wanted it. 26 years later I retired from the power company.
Fate is a weird thing.

David

I remember very well, Union Pacific's "Great Big Rolling Railroad" TV commercials. I would guess from what I can remember they would have been aired about the mid to late 70's. They wer the only commercials that I actually WANTED to see.

 Growing up in the Portland, Oregon area, I saw a lot of Armour Yellow and Harbor Mist Grey, with the Cascade Green and Black in the distance across the Columbia River. I actually got got a little throttle time on a GP 38-2 one summer.

 Seeing it growing up, getting some cab rides, and loving Steam, from as young as I can remember, how could I not end up being a UP Fan?

Doug

Looking at my CFR49 right now; ethanol would be UN1170.  UN1987 is alcohol, n.o.s. (not otherwise specified).

Curt

Yes the UN# is 1170, but the DOT# is 1987 Flammable 3...which is what I usually see on them. That covers Ethanol, Denatured Alcohol and such.  Some good reading here...

http://www.chemkeys.com/blog/w...-of-Fuel-Ethanol.pdf

Yes, things are looking up for railroads.......but there is a dark cloud on the horizon. Coal is a major, major source of revenue; coal useage is being threatened by utilities converting to natural gas, which is alledgedly in abundance. Coal car loadings are lower, YoY. The rest of car loadings are up, particularly automotive.

       And yes, the advertising railroads are doing is very encouraging and reflect the high degree of profitability they are currently enjoying (nearing pharmaceutical company levels). But, what exactly are the ads supposed to be doing? Yes, CSX can haul a ton of freight 500 miles with one gallon of diesel fuel - but what does a shipper care? He cares about the rates he pays. Most of the railroad advertisement is self-congratulatory puff pieces, that do not sell their freight transportation business to potential customers. There is the old saw about advertising where the CEO says he knows that only half his ads are effective; the problem is, he does not know which half! With todays railroad ads, both halves are ineffective! But they certainly are entertaining for a railfan viewer.

mark no doubt coal is threatened somewhat.
It's funny that although the EPA is the one saying get rid of the coal, the pressure is actually coming from the Canadians. They say the air currents come their way and the ash is causing acid rain. I think the pressure is really coming from the petroleum industry but who could prove it.
Although the big north east power producers have gone to a "clean coal" technology where only steam is coming out of the stacks it's still not good enough.
One thing companies like NS and CSX have going for them still is a lot of coal is exported so they'll have a job for a long time to come.
I like seeing the commercials though.

David

One of the major reasons coal loadings are down right now is the mild winter.

Coal is still very much a big player in the railroad and energy industries and it's not going away any time soon. But the major factor in coal being down right now has been the warm and mild winter.

As it turned out I went to work for the very same Communications company that my wife worked at...I resigned in 06 after 10 years  after being trapped in a cubicle( my version of **** on earth) I was a "splicer" for 6 years  and I attempted to struggle through until I could get transferred back to a "non cubicle job"  but I could not take the stupidity..imagine "Dilbert meets Office Space"   After 4 years I was in the process of getting my 17th boss...I have no tolerance for stupidity especially when it is visited on me as a matter of course by actions beyond my control...I resigned from a job that paid me $65,000 a year and matched 80% of my contribution to the 401k...because they made it impossible for me to take pride in my employer and my participation in their endeavors...and I had read "Atlas Shrugged" and understood what too many do not..about what Ayn was talking about..and John Galt showed me that I was allowing inferior unappreciative people a control on my capabilities they had no right to claim..so I said "NO" to their mindless devouring of my mind...and did what John did..I took my abilities away from them

If you subscribe to the AAR News Briefs, you would not be surprised at just how well the railroads are doing.

Funny, how the mainstream media neglects to spread THIS news of economic growth!

What is the AAR News Briefs and where do I need to type into the Net to visit?

The railroads are the economic barometer of our fiscal well being...every product at some point in its life span has been on a train car...Railroads are like Bees  when they are all dead the people will be too....And I just received another invite to a UP job..but it is in UT so I cannot go...I wish they would hold the hiring sessions in the area where the jobs are actually at..dont post for a job in MO and then tell me I have to travel to UT... And what sucks is I would probably get hired since I am not going...that is my luck....I hold the winning lottery ticket until I check the numbers.....

Definitely a barometer, and Mr. Buffet's involvement is NO frivolous venture.