CSX does it again!


Y

Y3a

Stuck in the 1930's
What is up with CSX (Stands for "Crash, Spill, Explode) and the number of derails, explosions and such? I live outside DC, and within 200 miles their seems to have been 5-7 accidents in the last year. NS has maybe had 1-2 in the same time. Is it lack of decent track maintenance, carelessness, bad luck, location of the right of ways? I'm a fan of the older C&O, and it's kind of sad to hear of the disasters.
 
We really need to replace the old tank car design, restrict the speed on dangerous goods, and dare I say it... Loose the union attitude?
At least that goes for the RR's I've dealt with.
 
I always thought "CSX" stood for "Chicken S(crap) Xpress".
I know they own some of the oldest routes, and sometimes that means very tight, close quarters, both in curvature and in proximity.
NS has won the safety award almost every year that I am aware of, and before that time, N&W and Southern would be #1 and #2 for that award.
 
UNIONS huh? I suspected. I USED TO TAKE DC's "METRO" subway to work, but the union slacks would be talking on their cell phones and wait too long to open the doors, so those wanting to board were shafted. I saw countless metro employees standing around doing nothing. I emailed them and told them to do something or I would give copies of my videos to all the local county gov't who were helping to fund Metro. They threatened me, but I know enough about the law so I wasn't worried about their bluster. I DO NOT use Metro anymore, and refer to it as the "Sewer Train"....
 
It's a stretch guys to call out labor unions being a contributing factor to an accident within 2 posts regarding an accident you know little about. Union or non-Union, you can have employees with poor work ethic and bad attitudes anywhere. I've worked at both. I would argue that most labor unions have done more to promote safety than protect work rules and pay rates, which is not necessarily a bad thing and things like pay rates and schedules are largely subject to economic and peer contract changes.

At the end of the day, nothing protects a worker more than a company with a strong balance sheet, good employees w high morale, a high stock price (if publicly traded), and bright prospects for the future.

Brad
 
"At the end of the day, nothing protects a worker more than a company with a strong balance sheet, good employees w high morale, a high stock price (if publicly traded), and bright prospects for the future."

Brad I totally agree with you and based my wording strictly on observations and past experiences.
Yes there are many possible causes for a derailment and we'll find out soon enough.
 
Absolutely correct Brad! I will wait to see who the 'authorities' say is responsible, or to blame. I still think about the 2 girls sitting on the bridge and were buried in coal when some 120 ton hoppers derailed.
 
I don't have all the facts, but I understand there may have been several derailments in this area in the past! Nothing man-made is totally reliable (speaking as a retired aerospace engineer). Capt Murphy, whether physically alive or not, still has working "laws" in place. But when you have a pattern of catastrophic failures, it is time to do some real engineering "soul searching"! There are always "tradeoffs" between the ideal design/maintenance/operations, but when things like this happen (and NOT just on this railroad), management better start looking a the real cost of "low-cost" operations. In other words, would it have cost the railroad less to spend a bit more on track and roadbed maintenance (or whatever), and not have to pay to clean up the wreckage, settle damage claims, etc.? [The man who told the Challenger's solid rocket booster engineering management to "think like a manager, not like an engineer" should be serving time in prison, rather than enjoying his "golden parachute" retirement!] Also, does anyone think that the Keystone pipeline might prevent similar accidents "out West"?
 
As someone who lives in North Dakota, rest assured that the Keystone won't prevent similar accidents. Just in the last 10 days or so, there was a 3 million gallon saltwater spill from a pipeline. And then there was the pipeline spill into the Yellowstone river, threatening water supplies downstream to Williston, ND. Last year there was a pipeline break that wasn't caught until the farmer near Tioga, ND, was out trying to work his field and had a strange smell in the field he was trying to work. They expected to take over a year to clean that one up.

Trailrider, there's no difference between a pipeline and a train-both man-made items and subject to the same problems, as you've pointed out. It's a matter of WHEN, not IF.

Photoman475
 
Well another thing that seems odd to me is that just the day before there was a CP derailment hauling oil in Canada. It looks kind of funny when you have two oil trains derail in that close a time frame together.

I know it might just be over thinking too.

David.
 
I too live near DC and I have to say the metro sucks. Right now they are talking of higher rates and cutting service. I've never hear of a company doing that to its customers. Why can they get away with it?

As far as CSX I have to wait until I hear what was the issue but feel they need to fix it. I did hear on the news they are talking of retro fitting the cars with more metal to thicken the skin.
As are as CSX or NS being a better railroad I would have to say NS is based on the company as an investment. As far as moral it is so true that you get less from a man you treat bad then good at work.

Dave
 
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