(The following article by Chip Jones was published in the January 7 issue of the Richmond Times-Dispatch.)
RICHMOND, Va. — Maybe he has diesel in his veins. Or maybe he is just a born railroader.
Whatever the reasons, Michael P. Jerew, the area’s top Amtrak official, seems to truly enjoy the daily challenge of keeping the trains running on time — or at least running.
“No two days are ever the same,” he said recently at the Staples Mill Station in Henrico County. “There’s always something.”
Case in point: Train 94 from Newport News had a potential safety problem. “It has a cab signal that could be trouble,” said Jerew, Amtrak’s district manager.
He clicked on his computer to see how much trouble was rolling down the track. At age 37, Jerew has a large area of responsibility. It runs north to Alexandria, east to Newport News, south to North Carolina and west past Charlottesville and all the way to Huntington, W.Va.
In all, he oversees 71 employees at eight Amtrak stations in Virginia and West Virginia. He also supervises 13 train depots, including Ashland, which have no employees.
This spring, a 14th unstaffed station will be added to his domain when Main Street in Richmond reopens.
But this day, it was the train arriving from Newport News that captured Jerew’s attention.
There were 300 people on board, his computer told him. Dozens more were milling about on the Staples Mill platform, ready to take the northbound train.
Jerew started preparing for the worst. Federal rail safety rules required a check of Train 94’s onboard cab safety signals before it could leave his station.
If the signals failed the test, the diesel locomotive pulling the train would have to be taken out of service. A replacement engine would have to be found — no easy task.
Jerew examined his options: He could ask for a locomotive from Washington’s Union Station, but that would take at least two hours.
Or he might try to borrow an engine from the Richmond-based freight railroad, CSX Corp. But those engines sometimes are too wide to get through the train tunnel in Washington.
Option three was putting the passengers on buses and driving them to Washington. It was not a pretty thought.
Awaiting the train’s arrival, he hoped for the best. A strain of optimism helps someone in his shoes.
Ever since he joined Amtrak in 1984, Jerew has heard rumors of the railroad’s demise.
“I really didn’t understand the politics of Amtrak until I came on with the company,” he said. “One of the first things I was told when I got my foot in the door in Buffalo was, ‘Don’t get too comfortable. You won’t be here very long. Mr. Reagan will take care of that.’ ”
But Jerew’s career has spanned several presidencies. Despite the constant bickering in Washington over funding from Congress, Jerew said of his decision to join Amtrak: “It’s been a great move.”
Initially, he planned to go to college but wasn’t sure of a course of study. Working with trains was a family tradition.
Jerew’s father joined Amtrak in the mid-1970s. He’s still an engineer on the Empire Line between New York City and Niagara Falls, N.Y.
Jerew’s grandfather was a train engineer on the New York Central.
“I had the opportunity to go behind the throttle,” Jerew said. “I chose not to for family reasons.” With a wife and daughter, he didn’t want to be away from home for days at a time.
He started as a ticket clerk near Buffalo, and worked as a baggage clerk, commissary clerk, material clerk and custodian. “But I always had a desire to maybe go into management where I could be promoting change,” Jerew said.
When the Richmond job opened in mid-2001, he was one of 11 candidates interviewed by Amtrak’s management.
His boss says Jerew won out because of his varied experience, including helping open new stations like Main Street in Richmond.
“Mike stood out because he has this extensive background in customer services and train operations but also understands how that fits into the bigger picture,” said Mark Rose, Amtrak’s assistant superintendent, customer services.
Staples Mill Station, with 16 to 18 trains a day, is a vital cog on Amtrak’s east coast corridor. Jerew is known for doing more with less across his two-state region.
He credits Amtrak President David Gunn for boosting morale since taking over this past spring.
“He’s got this policy — there are no secrets,” Jerew said. “He’s like an open book and it’s very well received by employees.”
Amtrak continues to have limited resources, he said, “but it also makes you a good manager because you have to be resourceful. You depend a lot more on the teamwork your employees can provide.”
This day was no exception: When Train 94 arrived from Newport News, a mechanical electrician sprung into action.
He placed blue flags on either end of the train, signifying that it was out of service for maintenance. Then the electrician hopped aboard and, using a special box, checked the train cab’s signal system.
Meanwhile, Amtrak’s station employees kept loading passengers and luggage. To the riders, nothing looked amiss. And, much to Jerew’s relief, the cab’s signal system passed the test.
The engineer rang a bell and blew a whistle. The train left the station only a few minutes behind schedule.
“It’s still a great way to ride,” Jerew observed.
If Amtrak had more resources and found new ways of luring the traveling public, he said, “Could you imagine how much better we could be?”