(Bloomberg News circulated the following article by Rip Watson on September 13.)
NORFOLK, Va. — Norfolk Southern Corp., the fourth-largest U.S. railroad , expects to run its first train through New Orleans today since Hurricane Katrina hit two weeks ago, resuming connections with Western railroads.
The company finished repairs on a 5.6-mile bridge across Lake Pontchartrain east of the city, allowing the service to resume, spokeswoman Susan Terpay said Monday.
Union Pacific Corp. spokesman Mark Davis said the resumption will let Norfolk Southern exchange four daily trains with his company. The move will end detours of the traffic through Memphis, Tenn.
Most U.S. railroads were unable to run trains through New Orleans after the storm because of track and bridge damage caused by Katrina’s 140-mph winds and flooding.
CSX Corp., the No. 3 U.S. railroad, still is blocked from reaching the city.
Norfolk Southern, based in Norfolk, still won’t be able to use its New Orleans freight yard, which is under a foot of water, Terpay said.
The Lake Pontchartrain bridge needed repairs because several miles of track on it were washed away, forcing the railroad to halt shipments as far away as Hattiesburg, Miss., more than 100 miles to the northeast.
Union Pacific, the biggest U.S. railroad, resumed service in New Orleans one week after the storm.
Trains are limited to daylight hours because of a curfew, the Omaha, Neb.-based company said on its Web site.
Norfolk Southern’s stock closed up 54 cents at $36.59 a share in New York Stock Exchange trading Monday.