FEC's Hertwig Looks to the Future

[spuwho]

Trains Magazine ran an interview with FEC President James Hertwig that was interesting.  Unfortunately, this story has a copyright and I cannot provide a link (behind a subscription) nor can I type it up verbatim. Therefore this will be a paraphrased posting of the interview. Perhaps MJ can set up their own interview with him and dig deeper.

- 77% of FEC is currently intermodal
- 5 to 6 trains a day going south
- 55 percent of their traffic interchanges with Norfolk Southern
- 45 percent goes from Jax to Miami (or elsewhere on the FEC)

Advantages
- for every 4 truckloads going south, only one comes back full
- FEC leverages this by providing access to carriers in Jax to drop off their loads and they carry it and return it back to Jax

FEC to Nashville
- A client in Nashville was running out of trucks and needed to service Miami
- FEC drives the truck to Atlanta, puts it on a NS train, it then has a through route to Miami on FEC
- This provides 2nd day delivery

Panama Canal
- 10% of port containers go on FEC in Miami
- Rest is delivered or trucked
- FEC "on dock" rail facility opens this year
- Seeks to capture 20-25% of container traffic
- Selling customers on their transload/warehouse facility at Hialeah
- Imbalance is 4 to 1 with China, make routing containers direct to Atlanta or Charlotte tough due to return costs, - - FEC wants to eliminate that problem using Hialeah
- Opening new domestic port cargo facility at Fort Lauderdale

Freight Types
- FEC and mixed trains..OK? Yes, we will place anything on back of intermodal if it is ready
- 60mph, 136lb rail and ATC, FEC can do it

FEC, learn from trucking?
- Frequency of departures and on time
- New Cocoa intermodal facility opened, captures freight going into central florida (big market he says)
- Says a large retailer wanted service from Jax to Cocoa, FEC said "yes"
- FEC drives the trucks to Jax from Savannah, transloads them onto rail and sends them to Cocoa
- Why? Trucking firms are out of drivers, rail is the option

Passenger Service
- South of Cocoa, all double track
- Says he doesn't run passenger, so he is more concerned about Jax to Cocoa
- Says he is concerned, running freight with passenger requires ontime performance from both
- More sidings in the plans
- Next 3 years will increase, 30% double track to 50% double track

[Ocklawaha]

The industry is (and has been in) a huge rebound, in short "TRACKS ARE BACK." 30% double track to 50% is a great start, in 1963 the railroad was closer to 95% double track but the capacity was lower and the track poorer, due to signaling, age and lighter construction.