(RailAmerica issued the following news release on April 2.)
BOCA RATON, Fla. — RailAmerica, Inc. announced that its Exeter, California-based San Joaquin Valley Railroad (SJVR) was named “Short Line Railroad of the Year” by Railway Age magazine.
SJVR was selected for the award based on its ability to turn an unprofitable, unsafe and non-customer friendly railroad into a profitable and safe railroad that thrives on customer service in less than a year. In the write-up submitted by SJVR General Manager Chuck Littlefield, he states, “The San Joaquin Valley Railroad saw the close of 2001 with an uncertain future due to financial losses of nearly a half million dollars, seven reportable personal injuries, over 200 miles of our 321 miles of track was in extremely poor condition, with nearly 100 miles of track being a candidate for abandonment, and customers taking their business elsewhere at an alarming rate due to a lack of customer responsiveness.”
“We focused heavily on building back our customer base through consistent and quality service, resulting in a 9% carload growth over 2001,” says Littlefield. “We trimmed our costs substantially and then controlled them through persistent attention to detail. With the increase in carloads, we were able to reduce our operating ratio, as defined as total operating expenses divided by total operating revenue, to 82%, well below our 2002 plan. In addition, we operated the entire year without a single reportable personal injury, and as of April 1, 2003 we had compiled 562 injury-free days.”
“In less than a year, a new management team and operational approach turned the SJVR into one of the biggest successes in the RailAmerica network of 46 domestic freight railroads,” said Gary M. Spiegel, RailAmerica’s Executive Vice President & Chief Operational Officer, North America. “This turnaround is not an anomaly for RailAmerica railroads. We have had tremendous success taking operations that were once failing and making them profitable through our proven short line operational approach.”
“The SJVR personifies the type of success smaller railroads can achieve, even when faced with economic hardships and uncertain outlooks,” said Railway Age Publisher Robert P. DeMarco. “The turnaround experienced by SJVR shows what can be done when basic railroading principles, like customer service, safety and performance become the building blocks of resurgence.”
RailAmerica acquired the San Joaquin Valley Railroad through its acquisition of StatesRail in January 2002. Railway Age will present the Short Line and Regional Railroad of the Year Awards at the American Short Line Railroad Association’s 2003 Annual Meeting May 18-20, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
RailAmerica, Inc. (NYSE:RRA) is the world’s largest short line and regional railroad operator with 49 railroads operating approximately 12,900 miles in the United States, Canada, Australia and Chile. In Australia and Argentina, an additional 4,300 miles are operated under track access arrangements. The Company is a member of the Russell 2000(R) Index. http://www.railamerica.com