http://cs.trains.com/trn/b/fred-frailey ... oment.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; Another great article about UP implementing PSA, this time from Fred Frailey.
I do agree that UP has a lot of excess trackage that they need to shed off in order to become an efficient railroad, as they are plagued by lower-density lines that would make perfect ground for a new shortline or regional. We could see the revival of the western/midwestern regional thanks to UP. They are in the early process of evaluating what lines to keep and what lines to sell, as evident by this line in the original Trains article, "UP declined to provide additional details but had said it was in the early stages of reviewing its operating plan on a corridor-by-corridor basis." This is very similar language that CSX used when they first announced their line sales back in January.
While the Steam Program and the Business Car Fleet are expensive burdens on UP, I highly doubt that they will be downsizing or shutting them anytime soon, as both are sources of major pride for the railroad. As for the hump yards, whether or not they will be shut down remains to be seen. Do expect a lot of employees to be laid off though.
UP is currently in the process of streamlining their network through the implementation of PSA, while also reinvesting money back into the remaining network. Unfortionly CSX back east is only doing the former, which, in a time of unprecedented economic growth, is not the right action to take. CSX, take notes.
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