cp8905
Well Fred certainly did knock down a hornets' nest. And those hornets, they be loose and angry.
I'm not going to get involved over there because everything there is just too blame emotional. Thought, reason and logic do not have a chance against emotion.
I do have some railroad experience. I have hooked up air hoses, mounted and dismounted moving equipment, set handbrakes, etc. But most of my time was spent in marketing, so take what I say with that in mind.
It's perfectly obvious to me that some trains can be operated safely and efficiently with a one person crew. It's also perfectly obvious to me that some trains require multiple crew members to operate safely and efficiently. (i.e., Wouldn't a CN reefer block/train out of Waterloo, IA running to eastern connections in Chicago be a good thing? Iowa produces a lot of pork. The northeast eats a lot of Iowa pork. It now moves by truck. One person could run that block/train into Chicago from Waterloo on a regular schedule with regular rest. Wouldn't that be a good thing?)
Instead of screaming "NO", I would like to see railroad workers engaged through their unions with their employers to determine and negotiate where such operations would work. I guess that's too much to hope for. Too much emotion, not enough thought and reason.
One person crews do work. And they work well and safely under the right conditions. It has been proven in other countries and in these United States. I sure would like to see everyone work it out like grownups.
"By many measures, the U.S. freight rail system is the safest, most efficient and cost effective in the world." - Federal Railroad Administration, October, 2009. I'm just your average, everyday, uncivilized howling "anti-government" critic of mass government expenditures for "High Speed Rail" in the US. And I'm gosh darn proud of that.
