Opinion Piece on Supply Chain Issues with Railroads

[C855B]

https://www.wired.com/story/a-us-freight-rail-crisis-threatens-more-supply-chain-chaos/

Blames labor disputes and PSR.

[Jbub]

"Last year, 170-year-old BNSF, owned by Warren Buffett, and 160-year-old Union Pacific both reported record profits."

BNSF is 170 years old???

[C855B]

Uh huh. From Wikipedia:

BNSF's history dates back to 1849, when the Aurora Branch Railroad in Illinois and the Pacific Railroad of Missouri were formed. The Aurora Branch eventually grew into the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, (CB&Q), a major component of successor Burlington Northern. A portion of the Pacific Railroad became the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway (Frisco).

[Jbub]

Uh huh. From Wikipedia:

I get what you're saying, it has roots that are 170 years and BNSF acknowledges those routes but their own history book says that the company was created September 22, 1995 through a merger of ATSF and BN. It's all semantics I guess.

[packers#1]

I get what you're saying, it has roots that are 170 years and BNSF acknowledges those routes but their own history book says that the company was created September 22, 1995 through a merger of ATSF and BN. It's all semantics I guess.

Not just semantics, what elicits the emotional response desired and isn’t an actual bold faced lie.

[jagged ben]

"Last year, 170-year-old BNSF, owned by Warren Buffett, and 160-year-old Union Pacific both reported record profits."

BNSF is 170 years old???

They're counting from when the CB&Q was founded, under a different name.

[Jbub]

They're counting from when the CB&Q was founded, under a different name.

I understand BNSF's heritage, but the company itself is not 170 years old. BNSF is just like CSX and NS having a defined and specific start of operations AFTER a merger that nullified the merging companies. To be specific September 22, 1996; July1, 1986 and July 23, 1980 respectively.
As packers#1 wrote the statement elicits an emotion response that in 170 years they've never had such a profit margin. Although not a "bold faced lie" it is not the truth either. BNSF is only 26 years old and that doesn't sound as juicy. Coincidentally BNSF is the same age as BN was when it merged with ATSF. I know, the BN merger was a restructuring and rename as all 4 railroads were under the same ownership at the time.

[peteski]

Although not a "bold faced lie" it is not the truth either. BNSF is only 26 years old and that doesn't sound as juicy.

We live in the world where"alternate facts" are widely accepted by large part of the population, so a little "spin" on the facts seems perfectly reasonable.   Sad, but true.

[Spades]

Not just semantics, what elicits the emotional response desired and isn’t an actual bold faced lie.

The day before and after the merger 97% plus of the people, assets, stationery, practices and locations remain the same.  I get the heritage thing.

[Spades]

There are many factors.  The railroads like the airlines just cut/furloughed/brought out, people for the pandemic and are now scrambling for personal.  It probably didn't help that there were embargos on where railcars were being sent. China with the roving quarantines and Taiwan.  You don't overfly Taiwan anymore.  China is now a stop over rather than a lay over. Still the same with crazy routing. 

[DKS]

BNSF's history dates back to 1849, when the Aurora Branch Railroad in Illinois and the Pacific Railroad of Missouri were formed.

Wait... Aurora was founded in 1950, and they started their railroad in 1967...

http://davidksmith.com/postage-stamp-trains/aurora.htm

[jagged ben]

I understand BNSF's heritage, but the company itself is not 170 years old. BNSF is just like CSX and NS having a defined and specific start of operations AFTER a merger that nullified the merging companies. To be specific September 22, 1996; July1, 1986 and July 23, 1980 respectively.
As packers#1 wrote the statement elicits an emotion response that in 170 years they've never had such a profit margin. Although not a "bold faced lie" it is not the truth either. BNSF is only 26 years old and that doesn't sound as juicy. Coincidentally BNSF is the same age as BN was when it merged with ATSF. I know, the BN merger was a restructuring and rename as all 4 railroads were under the same ownership at the time.

I mean, there's a continuous corporate history and according to Wikipedia (which references an actual SEC form for which the link is dead) ATSF merged into BN.  Of course the previous companies didn't cease to exist, the employees pretty much all went to work the day before and the day after same as before.  So they changed the name, but by that logic BNSF is only 17 years old, not 26, because in 2005 they officially changed from Burlington Northern Santa Fe to BNSF.

Also FWIW, BNSF regularly touts the 170+ years in its advertising, for example on PBS.

But hey let's talk about railroad operations and impending supply shortages, shall we?