www.railroad.net US News. 6th December 2011

BNSF Treats Troops to Train Ride
Posted: 05 Dec 2011 12:49 AM PST

The LaCrosse Tribune has reported that BNSF Railway recently honored America’s troops in a unique way.  On Saturday, December 4, the railway treated nearly 300 Wisconsin soldiers and their families to a ride along the Mississippi River in vintage passenger cars.  This is the fourth year that BNSF has hosted the scenic train ride, known as the Holiday Express, but 2011 marks the train’s first trip to Wisconsin.  In addition to providing rides on the Holiday Express, BNSF also presented a $10,000 check to Operation Homefront and PROUD Wisconsin, which are two nonprofit organizations that work with military families in the Wisconsin area. In addition to its most recent stop in Wisconsin, the Holiday Express also opened its doors to troops in Minnesota, Illinois, Kansas, North Dakota and South Dakota.
The Holiday Express honors the country’s military servicemen, but BNSF officials also pointed out that former troops are some of their best employees.  In fact, one official even said, “the finest employees are those who served in the military.”  BNSF’s appreciation for veteran employees is reflected in the fact that more than 15% of BNSF’s workforce is comprised of military veterans.
BNSF’s Holiday Express is a great way to bring cheer to our country’s troops and their families.  By hosting the event, BNSF is aptly showing its appreciation for America’s troops, but the $10,000 donations make the event even more commendable.  The Holiday Express was able to provide a fun time for 300 people in Wisconsin this past weekend, but this is a small fraction of the troops that BNSF has effected this holiday season.


Questionable Spending for the High-Speed Rail Authority
Posted: 05 Dec 2011 12:30 AM PST

California’s high-speed rail project lacks funding and unanimous support, but controversy is one thing that the project has always had plenty of.  The San Francisco Chronicle has reported that the latest source of controversy comes from the questionable spending practices of the High-Speed Rail Authority.  It has recently been discovered that the authority has spent $12.5 million on pubic relations in the last two years.
The authority has paid substantial amounts of money to major public relations firms, many of which have political connections.  A clear example of the politically connected PR firms could be found in the $350,288 paid to Denise LaPonte’s, a former High-speed Rail Authority board member, PR firm since 2009.  Denise LaPonte’s firm is only one example; in total, 20 PR firms have been used by the High-Speed Rail Authority since 2007.  One of the most questionable bouts of PR spending could be seen in $9 million deal, $3 million of which was paid in full, with Ogilvy Public Relations in 2009 that was soon ended because of a lack of results. After all this spending, it would seem that clear results could be found, but Democrat Jerry Hill admitted, “frankly I can’t see one benefit of that $12.5 million  in spending.” The authority responded by saying that the spending on public outreach is reasonable “given the size and complexity of the project.”
In today’s world, it is common for spending records on government projects surface to create controversy, but in terms of the High-Speed Rail Authority’s public relations spending, the controversy is well deserved.  For most outsiders looking in, the fact that most of the PR firms have political connections seems questionable at best and suspicious at worst.  If the authority was able to show more concrete results for spending nearly $13 million, everyday, tax-paying Americans would be more willing to accept the costs, but unfortunately, it is the opinion of many that there is nothing to show for the spending at all.  California’s high-speed rail project is already in serious danger because of lack of funding, which makes it even more disturbing that the authority is, or at least seems to be, wasting precious funds.


Chicago Welcomes Holiday Train
Posted: 04 Dec 2011 08:26 PM PST

The Holiday season is full of tradition and for the Chicago Transit Authority, holiday tradition takes the form of the CTA holiday train.  The holiday train spreads holiday cheer on all of CTA’s eight passenger rail lines at no additional cost to passengers.  The holiday train takes a normal six passenger rail car train and includes a special flatcar at the head of the train.  The flatcar features Santa Clause in his sleight, reindeer, and decorated Christmas trees.  The front of the train adorns a “Happy Holidays” message. The train’s interior also features red and green lights, bows, garland, rope lights and candy cane stripe decoration. 2011 marks a 20 year journey for CTA’s holiday train, which began as an out-of-service train with a “Season’s Greetings from the CTA” sign and has evolved into the holiday phenomenon it is today. The holiday train will operate until December 22.
NWI.com has reported that passengers greatly enjoy the CTA’s holiday experience.  Some Chicago commuters go out of their way to ride the train, while others can enjoy the holiday cheer while completing their everyday commutes.   One rider shared that the holiday train ride is therapeutic, explaining that,  “[the train] smells great and puts me in a great mood after work.” CTA employees also enjoy the special holiday tradition and find a great deal of enjoyment in witnessing the expressions of children and passengers who board the holiday train.
CTA’s holiday train seems like an enjoyable tradition for all of CTA’s passengers.  The train offers a great activity for families and children this holiday season and after a long day of work, a trip on a festive holiday train surely lifts the spirits. CTA should be proud of the fact that the holiday train has been operating for two decades.  Hopefully CTA will have funding to continue this rich holiday tradition for another 20 years.


Amtrak May Layoff Some Nonunion Employees
Posted: 04 Dec 2011 05:46 PM PST

2012 will witness dramatic cuts to Amtrak funding and the Philadelphia Inquirer has reported that some of the early effects of these cuts will soon be felt by Amtrak employees.  Last month Amtrak began offering voluntary buyouts to management employees, but there have now been discussions about the possibility of laying off the nonunion workers to cut costs.  The possible firings, referred to as “involuntary separations” by an Amtrak spokesman, will not threaten the employment of all 3,000 nonunion Amtrak workers, but some management employees will be the first to be targeted.  Ultimately, the layoffs will cut costs so funding can be diverted to upgrading Amtrak’s reservations system, purchasing new passenger cars and locomotives, and implementing e-ticketing on a national level.
This story is an unfortunate example of how cuts in government funding have negative effects on common Americans.   For the small portion of Amtrak employees that are not union workers, the 2012 spending bill may significantly change the course of their lives.  Its good to hear that Amtrak will buyout the management employees that will have to be laid off, but in this job market finding alternative employment wont be easy.  No company wants to fire employees to cut costs, but Amtrak is left with little choice in the matter.  Despite loosing funding, Amtrak still strives to improve their passenger service and its unfortunate that nonunion workers will now have to pay the price for these improvements.