T h e e m p l o y e e m a g a z i n e o f T e a m B n S f J a n U a R y / f e B R U a R y 2 0 0 6

The 09-3X TamperA new high-capacity, high-

speed tamping system is operating on portions of

BNSF, surfacing more track in less time than standard

equipment. The technology necessitated a unique

labor agreement. Page 5

Take AIMAIM (Assess. Improve.

Maximize.) is a continuation of the Carload Reshape initiative

begun several years ago at BNSF, but with more specifics behind improving efficiency

and fluidity of the carload network.

Page 6

Also InsideQ&A with Matt Rose

A self-assessment study conducted last year identified BNSF strengths as well as four main issues our company

faces. Read about the findings and how BNSF plans to address concerns. Page 2

Once a Railroader, Always a Railroader Long-time employee, now a retiree, Chard Walker

remembers life on Cajon Pass in Southern California and provides perspective on the current state of the railroad

on this critical gateway. Page 8

RAILwAy STAffVP, Corporate Relations Richard Russack

editor: Marietta Collins

associate editor: Susan Green

Contributing photographers: Chuck Gierhart, Scott Lockwood, David Lustig and Clarke Sutphin

GoT A SToRy IdeA? Send story ideas to BNSF Railway Editor, via Outlook to: Communications, Corporate, or send by Internet to: marietta.collins@bnsf.com, or susan.green@bnsf.com. Or mail to:BNSF Corporate RelationsP.O. Box 961057Fort Worth, Texas 76161-0057

AddReSS ChAnGeS employees: To review your address, call company line 435-3345 or dial 1-800-274-6739 or review and change your address online via BNSF ‘s Intranet site at employee.bnsf.com. Go to the My Self page, Life Events and click on Change of Address. Or you may complete and return a Personal Information Change Form (#12796) to the administrative office; mail it to Human Resources Information Systems, P.O. Box 961055, Fort Worth, Texas 76161-0055; or fax it to 817-352-7109.

Retirees: Send address changes and requests to receive Railway after you retire to BNSF Corporate Relations, P.O. Box 961057, Fort Worth, Texas 76161-0057. Please include your Social Security number.

our vision is to realize the

tremendous potential of BnSf

Railway Company by providing

transportation services

that consistently meet our

customers’ expectations.

� RAILwAy I JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2006

on The CoVeRTriple track is now in place on portions of BNSF’s Cajon Pass in Southern California. This photo was taken near Keenbrook by David Lustig.

Matt, BnSf has been on a roll – growing, in fact, when other industries and companies have been struggling. why did BnSf do this study when we have been achieving success?

Companies always need to evaluate their structure, capabilities and effectiveness. We thought the best way was to ask our employees, so that’s what we did, and our employees responded in record numbers. That shows BNSF employees have opinions on how the company can improve, and there’s a mutual trust that the information they provided will be used. We’re always looking for continuous improvement.

what are some of BnSf’s strengths identified in the study?Employees said BNSF is doing many things very well: BNSF has strong financial and operational

performance. Employees enjoy their jobs, are good at what they do, and are optimistic about the future. Plus, employees said they have confidence in the direction of the company, especially the Leadership Model. We heard throughout the survey that we’re not perfect and that there are some leaders who don’t live the Leadership Model behaviors on a consistent basis. But we’ve been at it (Leadership Model) long enough that people are seeing the results and encouraging us to continue.

what areas were cited as barriers or needing improvement?There were really four main issues identified as being the most critical and having the greatest potential for

impact. They are strategy, work/life balance, workforce planning and leadership.The biggest surprise to me was that people said they don’t know about our strategy. As part of the

(executive) leadership of this company, the strategy appears clear to me, but the survey indicates employees don’t have that same clarity. To address that issue, we first took time to make sure our leaders understand the strategy – and they do. Then we discussed how to communicate the strategy. A part of this process is showing how our Vision, Values and Leadership Model relate to each other and to our strategies. The first three are our foundation; they’re enduring and guide our behavior, including how we’re going to implement the strategies to achieve the annual plan. Our Vision and Values will not change, while our

Study, Strategies Building on ProgressAn Interview with Matt Rose

Since mid-2003, BNSF has been handling quarter after quarter of record-breaking volumes that have stretched our people and infrastructure. The company expects volumes to continue increasing in 2006 and beyond, again challenging employees to work as safely and as efficiently as possible and to improve velocity. In addition, up to 40 percent of BNSF’s workforce will become eligible to retire within five years.

To take advantage of the “lessons learned” over the past several years and to ensure the railway is prepared for the expected workforce transition and positioned for continued growth and effectiveness, BNSF conducted in mid-2005 a “self-assessment study” of the key factors that are contributing to BNSF’s overall success. The self-assessment included a survey among salaried employees, several focus groups with salaried and scheduled employees and interviews of about 20 BNSF leaders.

Railway asked BNSF Chairman, President and CEO Matt Rose about the study’s findings and what BNSF plans to do to address the concerns raised.

strategies will evolve and grow over time. We’ve spent the last 60 days getting clarity of those relationships, and now we’re rolling out communications that we believe will improve understanding of our strategies.

Moving forward, how are we going to address these issues?

A sponsor or team has been identified to lead the improvement effort for each of the four main issues. Plans are being developed, some of which can be acted upon quickly in the next six months or less, while others will require a longer period. Take workforce planning. We already had identified this as an issue we need to address over the next few years. So BNSF has a plan to aggressively hire more people across the crafts, in addition to the large hiring programs we’ve experienced in the last two years.

We’ll be sure to keep employees informed about the progress we’re making on all of these issues.

A company’s strategy can be very complex. Can you briefly explain the key points of BnSf’s strategy?

First, we must start with our Vision and Values, our foundation. Our vision is “to realize the tremendous potential of BNSF by providing transportation services that consistently meet our customers’ expectations.” There’s a lot of strategy in our vision statement, but the study indicated that it may not be detailed enough for some people. When you think about it in terms of business drivers, it says that if we meet our customers’ expectations, we can charge a market price for the services we provide. That allows us to reinvest and reward our stockholders and our employees through improved pay as well as stability of our jobs. To further expand on our vision, we’ve developed five strategic focus areas: franchise, service, return, people and community. And within each of these areas, we have several strategies to help us achieve our annual plan.

does this replace the Strategic wheel that was introduced more than five years ago?

Yes. As BNSF has kept its commitment to continuous improvement, we’ve grown and developed beyond the Strategic Wheel (introduced in 1999). Our five strategic focus areas represent the next stage of our strategic thinking process that began with the wheel.

why is it important that employees understand the strategies? does every employee have a role?

I’ve believed for a long time that, while our railroad has been successful since merger, we will never fulfill our destiny and our potential until all 40,000 employees understand their

roles and feel part of our success. We’ve made great strides with our unions on incentive compensation that allows employees to share financially in our success. But true success will be driven by all 40,000 employees as we get alignment of our goals and we’re all moving in the same direction. That is the key to continuing success and viability.

how will these strategies be communicated to employees?

The communication is starting now with this Q&A. You’ll hear more about the strategies in department and team meetings, conference calls and other employee discussions. It also will be built into our People Leader training and talked about in our system communications. The communications will be ongoing and frequent. When you’re discussing activities, I want you to talk about how they support the strategies and our annual plan. If you don’t understand or have a question, then ask your supervisor – they should be your primary source of information about BNSF’s strategies.

you’ve also talked a lot about velocity and how it’s going to be an important piece of our strategies in 2006 and beyond. Can you tell us a little more about plans to improve velocity and why you believe every employee plays a role?

Next to safety, velocity is our most important focus. There’s a strong market and strong demand for our service. To grow, we will invest capital in capacity, but the real opportunity to grow is through improving velocity to handle more business. Traditionally, we’ve viewed velocity as the responsibility of Transportation, but every individual – from a track inspector to Maintenance of Way gangs to Mechanical to dispatchers – has a role in velocity. Even staff groups can support velocity by providing their services in a timely fashion.

how will we know when we’ve been successful with these strategies?

There are several measures of success, but we’ve identified three areas and built them into our incentive compensation program. They are: earnings per share, velocity and safety (injury frequency and severity). There are many other statistics we measure, but these are the top three measurements that we use to track our progress toward long-term success. Every employee can impact our ability to achieve them.

you already talked a little about workforce planning, a key issue identified in the study. Can you tell us more about our plans to address this issue?

The first step was to identify the problem, and we’ve done that. Our Workforce Planning model looked at every job and took into account both retirement and growth projections. If we err, we want to err on the side of bringing people on a little too early instead of a little too late.

ETMS (Electronic Train Management System) technology and expanded use of locomotive remote control will allow us to operate safely with smaller engine crews and help us address our Transportation workforce needs.

We’ve also stepped up our recruiting. To cite just a couple of examples, we’ve hired a specialist to recruit candidates from the military and we’ve conducted our own job fairs in some of our major employee locations.

We also have a strong concern about transitioning new hires so they can learn from experienced, retiring employees. We’ve clearly elevated this initiative to a level that reflects the importance of the issue. Now that we understand the magnitude of the problem, we’ve begun designing programs to address it.

work/Life Balance is a constant issue faced by the railroad industry. Considering we’re a 24 x 7 business, how can we improve work/life balance for our employees?

Due to the nature of our business, it will always be hard to achieve balance. But through scheduling and staffing, we can make, and have made, improvements.

Over the long term, work/life balance has improved for salaried employees, and we have plans in place for further improvement. Work/life balance is an especially important issue in our field organization. For scheduled Transportation employees, the No. 1 improvement would be a scheduled duty cycle. We believe in this practice and have implemented scheduled duty cycles in several locations, and we still have opportunities to implement more. (Note: Scheduled duty cycles is a program allocating specific number of work and rest days.)

Work/life balance is an issue that will never be resolved, but in the spirit of continuous improvement, it is one of our key strategies. We’ll keep looking at initiatives that will improve work/life balance, especially for field employees.

Is this a one-year plan or beyond?

We’re in this for the long term. Strategies are typically more than three years, so we’re looking at executing against this plan for the next five years. Then we’ll go on from there, adjusting the strategies to meet new challenges and pursue new opportunities.

RAILwAy I JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2006 �

4 RAILwAy I JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2006

while it’s been unusually warm and wet in portions of the system, other areas have been hit by snow and ice. An early blizzard struck portions of the Midwest, and then dry, windy conditions increased potential fi re dangers in the drought-plagued Southwest. Meanwhile, heavy rains in the Pacifi c Northwest resulted in rock slides and fl ash fl ooding.

As they have been trained and equipped to do, BNSF Operations employees have been responding to whatever winter brings. Trains have been held or rerouted, but Maintenance crews have done a remarkable job recovering and getting the lines reopened.

As always, BNSF began winter preparedness weeks before the fi rst snowfl ake fell. But with the increased traffi c volumes BNSF has been experiencing, these plans have been even more critical. In advance of winter, preparedness actions included: • Reviewing winter action plans, including a new fi ve-phase avalanche plan on the Northern Lines implemented this year. BNSF also has hired an avalanche expert.

• Installing more than 700 heaters designed to thaw frozen switches so they can be thrown more easily.

• Placing switch brooms and shovels at all switches so snow and ice can be removed manually, if need be.

• Identifying and keeping key sidings open either manually or with switch heaters and blowers.

• Maintaining and winterizing rail yards, facilities and equipment, including BNSF’s mini-dozers, jet-engine blowers, rotary plows and vehicles.

• Increasing rail-testing efforts to locate potential defects in the rail.

winter Pays BnSf a Call

A recent mudslide between Edmonds and Mukilteo, Wash., (approximately 20 miles north of Seattle), broke through a concrete containment wall.

The fi rst major blizzard of the season roared across the Great Plains Nov. 28, stopping train traffi c on its tracks. More than 10 inches of snow, whipped about by 60- to 70-mph winds, halted coal trains along more than 200 miles of track in Nebraska. One train stopped at Broken Bow, Neb., had drifts higher than the trucks and couplers and snow nearly packed solid between ties and car bottoms.

In Hathaway, Mont., a massive boulder had to be blasted off the tracks using explosives, and then the track had to be repaired in time for the train carry-ing UPS loads to get by and make sort.

old Man winter has defi nitely been doing a number on the railroad, and the season only offi cially began in late december!

By Susan green

The 09-3X Dynamic Tamping Express System is a high-capacity, high-speed tamping system designed specifi cally to maintain BNSF’s more costly concrete ties. BNSF took delivery of the 09-3X from Austrian company Plasser in May 2005. Since then, a seven-person crew has operated this new technology on the Powder River and Nebraska divisions, setting maintenance records daily.

“With the 09-3X, we can surface more track in much less time. With the volume of trains we’ve been running, we’re [Maintenance] only allowed so many hours on each track,” says Lloyd Ihde, roadmaster. “With a four-hour track window, we can surface approximately three to four miles using the 09-3X. With a Jackson 6700 [another tamping system], we’d only be able to surface a mile and a little better.”

The speed of the 09-3X can be partially credited to the ability to tamp three ties at a time. Also contributing to track-surfacing productivity improvements are computerized track measurement and a stabilizer. The stabilizer has small wheels that lower down and send vibrations through the track, stabilizing the rock underneath.

“One pass of the 09-3X dynamic stabilizer is equal to eight loaded coal trains. That eliminates almost four hours of slow orders,” says Dave Hestermann, chief engineer of the Central Region.

Reducing the slow-order time helps velocity. The fi rst assignment for the 09-3X was eastern Wyoming’s Orin (or Joint) Line, an area of high-volume and heavy loads from coal traffi c – and a line already suffering slow orders from ballast maintenance issues. By accomplishing more work in less time, the 09-3X is helping improve velocity across the BNSF system.

The productivity results from the 09-3X have made such a good impression that BNSF will try out a second 09-3X in the fall. Plasser will provide a demo of a new model that works with wood ties.

Wood tie spacing is not always equal or exact, explains John Upward, general director, Roadway Equipment. Because the 09-3X tamps three

ties at a time at a high rate of speed, it is important that either the ties be spaced evenly or the machine adjust the work heads quickly to accommodate the uneven tie spacing. The manufacturer is engineering a way to map out the track just ahead of the machine as it moves and compute the correct spacing for the tamper. If the 09-3X misses, it will destroy the wood tie.

“If we can make the technology work with wood ties, it would be well worth it to boost productivity, because we’re still mostly a wood tie railroad,” says Upward.

The success of the 09-3X is not just about the technology, but also experience and seniority. The seven-person crew, plus two relief operators on the 09-3X, came together through an interview process based in part on machine operator experience and seniority, and each BNSF team member has been cross-trained to know every job on the crew. The so-called “low guy on the totem pole” has 25 years’ service.

“The 09-3X was originally scoped to be an outsourced contractor operation. While contracting was a viable option, we felt that the 09-3X provided an excellent opportunity to insource the operation of this new

technology with BNSF employees,” explains Greg Fox, vice president, Engineering. “With an innovative labor agreement, we were able to place our BNSF employees in the seats. It doesn’t get much better than that!”

“Everyone wants to be here, and they are proud to be here,” says Elvin

Ferguson, foreman. In fact, on Jan. 1, the entire team committed to remain together for another year. Ferguson says he believes BNSF picked the best group.

“We look out for each other,” says Steve Lawler, machine operator. “We’re a good team, no arguments. We trust each other with our lives.”

Roadmaster Ihde says the team has a real sense of pride about the job they do because the 09-3X is the fi rst machine of its kind for BNSF and only the second in the United States.

“These guys have a high sense of quality in the job they do. They know they can’t just rely on the machine. Everyone is making sure everything is done perfectly and watching for anything that can go wrong,” says Ihde.

Inside the 09-3X it looks like the interior of a space ship from a favorite science fi ction fi lm – the pilot seat, computer screens, blinking light panels, monitors to see the front and rear views – all ergonomically designed and air conditioned. And most noticeably, the front and center windows offer a view of the tamper in action.

“It’s a fun machine to run,” Lawler says. “When you are in there with the machine going, it’s almost like a carnival ride. If it was not enjoyable, then I wouldn’t do it.”

09-�X: The Tamper to Beat All Tampers

The 09-3X Dynamic Tamping Express System is designed specifi cally to maintain BNSF’s more costly concrete ties.

from across the nebraska prairie it looks like a huge mechanical earthworm. a giant yellow machine, digging its blue prods into the rocky ballast, moves forward along the track. a closer look shows the equipment’s fl uid and continuous motion as those prods again and again lift the rail and ties, compact the ballast, and then lay everything back down again, tamping and then stabilizing a mile of track in less than an hour.

By Carrie Brewer martinez

RAILwAy I JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2006 5

“Everyone wants to be here, and they are proud to be here.”

– elvin ferguson, foreman

It’s an idyllic place that train crews dream of when it comes to serving a local line: Every shipper and receiver has adequate infrastructure at their facility, standardized switching is the norm, and a main line never has to be blocked to make a switch. There is no waiting for commuter trains. And shippers and receivers never verbally override a work order.

For customers, it’s an ultimate arrangement, too. Their in-bound and out-bound shipping needs are not only reliably and consistently met each time, but they now have a very narrow window for which they can better schedule their own crews and manage their supply chains. In this perfect world, BNSF crews and the local shipping/receiving network operate as a unified team.

It may not be the real world, but it’s not an impossible one, either. BNSF is committed to initiating measures that will bring us closer to that “ideal” model. An initiative called AIM (Assess. Improve. Maximize.) was rolled out late last year to methodically collect, store and utilize information regarding the first and last mile of the carload network. This initiative will ultimately help all BNSF employees and customers realize a more reliable and efficient local gathering and distribution network.

“The AIM initiative was developed based on feedback from customer symposiums and joint customer-industry forums,” says John Lanigan, BNSF’s executive vice president and chief marketing officer. “To best address these concerns, we will work collaboratively with our customers so we can implement improvements to help realize improved value and enhanced service reliability and consistency.”

AIM is a continuation of the Carload Reshape initiative begun several years ago, but with more specifics behind improving efficiency and fluidity of the carload network, which serves more than 6,000 unique locations each day by 800 locals, road switchers and yard jobs.

“I think AIM will allow us to serve our customers more reliably, and it also will allow us to use our assets, such as people and locomotives, and our capacity more efficiently,” says Ron Jackson, general manager, Northwest Division. “Having a consistent network ultimately improves the overall reliability of the carload network.”

This initiative has been discussed with customers throughout the carload network,

and there is overwhelming support. Gary Burns, logistics manager, U.S. Operations for CEMEX Inc., the largest cement and ready-mix company in the United States, says: “BNSF’s AIM effort is a well-timed initiative to update existing facilities and procedures at the ‘last mile.’ By establishing new standards and best practices at the last mile to reduce variation and better

match workload with resources, latent capacity will be captured, reliability will be improved, and delivery windows will be tightened.”

In the coming weeks, the initiative will be rolled out across the carload network.

Please read on to learn how AIM will help get us on track for future growth.

All Aboard!A wealth of information about the carload

network resides in the local crews who work industry sites day in and day out. Like postal delivery workers who know which customers have big dogs, which ones have unmarked or hard-to-reach mailboxes, or that the only access to customers’ mailboxes is through alleyways or long, rutted driveways, BNSF crews know the unique characteristics of each customer. Although they know our customers, there currently is no central repository for such information; therefore, that knowledge often goes untapped and cannot be put to use in improving traffic fluidity throughout the entire network.

Thus, in the first phase of the AIM initiative, BNSF will collect institutional knowledge about all carload customers. This information will be electronically stored and continuously updated. This data will be reviewed and categorized to determine the key factors contributing to inefficiencies on each local line.

The next Step in Carload Reshape

Assess the Carload Product

Improve the Carload Model

Maximize the Carload network

6 RAILwAy I JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2006

By Jeri petersen and Krista york

The recently rolled-out AIM initiative is aimed at improving efficiency and fluidity of BNSF’s carload network.

Beyond the Acronym… what are we AIMing for?

in short, aim is:

ASSESS: Analyze the operations of every carload customer to understand the unique requirements and structural limitations affecting efficiency and to clearly define the BNSF carload product.

IMPROVE: Use the information gathered to implement clearly defined services and collaborate with customers to develop solu-tions that enable all involved to realize the value of more efficient carload operations.

MAXIMIZE: Increase the consistency and velocity of the entire carload network by implementing efficiency-enhancing systems and through ongoing communication with customers.

“In this process, we acknowledge that local lines are like small communities whose residents share infrastructure like streets, utility lines and common areas; when one or two residents monopolize the services or utilities, their neighbors can literally be left in the dark,” says Dave Garin, group vice president, Industrial Products, who is leading the AIM effort. For example, one customer’s inadequate storage, last-minute work order changes or special switching requirements can cause crews undue work or unproductive wait time and often can result in other customers missing scheduled service.

“The data we collect during the first phase of AIM will allow Service Design to devise service plans with arrival time and amount of service time for each customer site,” Garin adds. Improvements such as reducing switching complexity at customer facilities and at BNSF yards and reducing unplanned overtime or wait times will result in better work/life balance for train crews and ultimately will lead to more predictable service for customers – which customer surveys indicate is their greatest concern.

“Information we capture on facility layout and geographic location, customer requirements, time to serve and current efficiency constraints will help paint a comprehensive picture of what it really takes to serve each customer,” says Garin.

why now?The carload network is one of the rail

industry’s most complex, due in part to individual customer requirements, facility layout and geographic location challenges. Increasing capacity in a complicated network is an issue the entire industry faces. And, while capacity can be increased by adding more track, more cars, more locomotives and more crews, these solutions are capital- and time-intensive. The solution is additional capital improvements combined with effective utilization of existing capacity, which will provide more immediate and long-lasting results and free up existing capacity – thus accommodating more volume.

At BNSF, data previously gathered from carload customers shows that the amount of time spent on each customer and their respective carload volumes often are not proportional. For example, 1.2 million units are delivered annually through BNSF’s local carload network, but 40 percent of each unit’s cycle time is spent in terminals and at customer locations. New, highly specific data will help BNSF pinpoint how individual customer requirements uniquely affect the local network.

“Defining the customer’s basic needs will allow us to determine the lowest repeatable service time and to simplify spotting, pulling and blocking cars. Our vision is to complete service requirements for each customer’s facility in less than one hour,” says Garin. The AIM initiative is not about exiting the carload

business, he says, but rather making it strong enough to grow and compete for internal assets.

Other practices that decrease efficiency but often are overlooked are verbal changes to work orders and value-added services that currently are part of BNSF’s basic carload service. Returning to the postal worker analogy, customers who want to have a package picked

up at a home or a business should expect to pay more for that service than if they took the package to the post office. Further, at no price would a postal worker come into a customer’s home or business, pack an item, wait for the customer to find an address, then label, weigh and put postage on the package – and then take it to the post office. But, in many cases, this is just like the range of complexities BNSF encounters at customer sites.

next StepIn the third quarter of 2006, after data

has been collected from all 13 divisions, a complete system profile will be created and data will be analyzed. Individual customers and neighborhoods of “collective customers” (customers served by the same local train) will be categorized according to the volume they request, the amount of time required to service them, and the complexities of the local infrastructure and work request. Issues will be prioritized, with those categories having the largest impact being addressed with the most resources first.

“By categorizing these customers and prioritizing the efficiency opportunities, we will be able to address structural challenges and ultimately realize value for the services provided,” says Garin.

In this portion of the AIM initiative, BNSF will engage all customers, including shippers and receivers, transloaders and shortlines, and collaborate on solutions to address their specific inefficiencies.

“Equal to the need for collaboration and analysis between shippers and railroads is the need for willingness to change,” adds Burns of CEMEX. “Some of the

changes may be costly, as many shipper facilities are landlocked, have insufficient volume, etc., to allow redesign of last mile facilities. The key will be to equitably allocate costs and benefits and identify areas where proposed changes drive sufficient value to support required investments. The outcome will mutually benefit shippers and railroads through greater efficiency, competitiveness and profit.”

“After agreeing upon basic carload services, manageable action items will be implemented with customers and Operations to address immediate improvement opportunities,” says Dave Dealy, vice president, Transportation. “Then we will initiate the improved carload product and set schedules and service times for our ‘fully optimized’ customers.”

Maximizing the Carload network

During this phase, service thresholds will be established and service exception alerts will be instituted to help customers plan their operations and realize improved service reliability. Long-term improvements in this phase will include technology enhancements and capital infusion to maximize the efficiency of the existing infrastructure.

“BNSF is committed to the AIM initiative, and we firmly believe we will begin to see quantifiable results by mid-2006, and we will reap the rewards of those results for years to come,” says Lanigan. “We will hold ourselves accountable by implementing a process for measuring and reporting on the success of this initiative to our employees and our customers.”

RAILwAy I JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2006 7

examples of value-added services that are currently part of the basic carload service include:

• “Cherry-picking” car releases

• On-site verbal work order overrides

• Specific car sequence requests

• Gathering and distribution by crews over a 10-mile radius where plants have inadequate capacity for storing over-ordered cars

• Spending as much time as necessary to switch a customer

• Blocking a mainline switch to serve a customer

• Specific spotting instructions

• High-service frequency for light-volume customers

• Serving hard-to-access locations

measures of success include:

• Increased units per train at start

• Reduced car cycle time in the local network

• Reduced order spot time

• Reduced average facility service time

• Improved switch consistency

• Reduced work-not-performed

• Increased work order consistency

• Lower unit cost

� RAILwAy I JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2006

At the crest of Southern California’s Cajon Pass, at 3,775 feet above sea level, is a lone station sign designating the location of Summit, once a round-the-clock, seven-day-a-week beehive of train operators keeping the constant flow of freight and passenger trains moving.

One of the station’s more prominent operators was Chard Walker, who held his Summit job for 16 years, beginning Jan. 1, 1951. Walker was a fixture at the small station – a U.S. Post Office, a few railway maintenance buildings and company homes for the employees – until its closure in 1967. Now 83, he lives in Hesperia, Calif., near Victorville, not too far from the job he enjoyed so much.

Recently, Walker took a tour of BNSF’s triple-tracking project over Cajon Pass with San Bernardino-based BNSF Manager of Engineering David M. Miller.

“The railway doesn’t have too many operators at on-line stations anymore, and certainly the motive power has changed,” says Walker. “But in other ways, like the use of helper locomotives, it’s the same Cajon Pass.” Centralized Traffic Control (CTC) signaling, installed during a line change at Summit in 1972, abolished operators and the stations they manned.

Walker hired on with the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway June 20, 1947, as a night clerk in Victorville. The 25-year-old’s first job consisted mostly of loading and unloading mail bags and express packages from trains stopping at Victorville between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m., with an hour thrown in for a meal. In between trains, he also acted as station janitor.

Eager to be an operator, after a few months Walker was hired to fill a vacancy at the station. Meanwhile, on his own time, he practiced

for an operator’s position with the help of other employees by working shifts under their supervision at Victorville and Summit. His first bid to become an operator was split duty at both Summit and Victorville with a seniority date of Sept. 5, 1947.

“I wanted it [the Summit job] more than anything else in the world, because I fell in love with the place when I was practicing to become an operator,” he recalls today.

Once Walker became the full-time relief operator at Summit in 1951, he never looked back. Starting as the fourth operator – relieving the station agent and other operators – his routine was two day shifts as agent, then two swing shifts for the second-trick operator, then two days off and finally a graveyard shift for the third trick. The “agent” title gave him a nickel more per hour in his pay envelope.

As his years and seniority increased, Walker settled into what would become his favorite shift, the 4 p.m.-to-midnight shift. He worked his family life, and the raising of two daughters, around it.

“I liked those hours because you didn’t have to be up real early in the morning and had the daytime free to do things,” he explains. “Then, when you worked your shift, it was busy, especially with passenger trains, most of which passed by at night.”

Holding down one job at a particular station had its advantages. Walker recalls being friendly with all the locomotive helper crews, and since he didn’t own a car, he’d hop trains from Summit down to San Bernardino to do his shopping. Depending on the time of day, going home could be a passenger train, a freight train or a light helper engine.

Another memory Walker has of Summit is the Descanso, a former city street car last used as a funeral car, which Walker used as sleeping quarters for eight years until he got married in 1955. Eventually the railway moved a company house up to Summit for him and his new bride.

This was also in the days long before nearby Interstate 15 moved trucks and cars over Cajon Pass. Then, it was Route 66, and the side road that went to Summit was paved in some spots, but mostly it was just windshield-pitting gravel. There was no water supply back then – a local from Barstow would deliver a tank car of fresh water once a week.

Today, standing at Keenbrook watching train after train roll by, Walker marvels both at the triple-track already in service, the plans to extend it all the way to Summit and the sheer volume of train traffic rolling by. Currently, between 80 and 110 trains (combined BNSF and Union Pacific, which has trackage rights) journey daily up and down the San Bernardino Mountains. When Walker was working, he recalls about 60 to 70, and that included about 18 separate light helper moves.

Summit was abolished as a manned post in February 1967, and Walker moved to a night job in the San Bernardino dispatcher office. Later, he bid on and got a tower job in Barstow, Calif. He “pulled the pin” June 9, 1983, almost 36 years after he first learned to throw heavy mail bags at Victorville.

Still a great fan of the railway (Walker brought his camera and took numerous photos the day of his visit to his old stomping grounds), he is pleased that Summit is still a vital part of the system.

Does he miss working on the railway? You’d think someone approaching 84 might mellow just a bit. But, in the middle of a conversation with Miller, Walker spots a headlight on the horizon and asks to put the conversation on hold for a moment so he can take a photograph. Walker’s love of the railway and the job he held are still as strong as ever.

Triple-Tracking To Increase Capacity

BNSF’s Cajon Pass route over the San Bernardino Mountains between Barstow and San Bernardino, Calif., has always been BNSF’s gateway to the Los Angeles area and points east and north. To ensure that Southern California remains the country’s premier entry point for containerized goods, BNSF is triple-tracking the route, which has been a bottleneck. The investment will be critical for handling the huge amount of freight moving in and out of the region, one of the fastest-growing in the country.

The 10-mile route between San Bernardino north to Keenbrook has already been triple-tracked. The remaining 15 miles of track work through Cajon Pass to Summit is expected to be completed by the third quarter of 2007. Currently, up to 100 trains operate daily over the route. When the triple-tracking is completed, capacity over the line will increase to 150 trains a day.

By David lustig

once a Railroader, Always a RailroaderChard walker Remembers

RAILwAy I JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2006 9

EDITOR’S NOTE: Do you ever have a question that you just can’t seem to find the answer for – a question about computers, departments and procedures at BNSF or any other subjects? To help get you answers, Railway introduces “Tank” and “Hopper,” our undercover rail sleuths. If there is something you want to know or know more about regarding BNSF, then email your questions to corporate.communications@bnsf.com, and Tank and Hopper will research selected questions and try to provide answers in Railway.

Tank: Hey, Hopper, what are we doing here?hopper: We’re going to do some fact-finding.Tank: Ahh! So we have been hired to be secret spies?hopper: No, Tank, we are going to investigate, as in doing research, busting myths, solving a conundrum, or answering questions that a reader might have been wondering about. You see?Tank: Well, Hopper, I’m sure there are readers out there who have spent their entire lives wondering about the mysteries of life. I mean how do they get the ships in those tiny bottles? Where have all the flowers really gone? And have you ever noticed how many BNSF departments have the word “Service” in their title? hopper: That’s as it should be, since BNSF provides transportation services.

OK, readers, enough chit-chat. We are focusing on three BNSF departments that are important to the field: Service Interruption, Service Scheduling and Service Design. We’ve come up with a scenario that will reveal how these departments work together and illustrate which department should be contacted depending on the situation. For the purpose of our scenario we’ve created a tornado that is affecting operations (although weather warnings typically are issued preventing this).

Setting the SceneThe crew on a manifest train is cruising along at track speed. A storm

has kicked up some sudden high winds, and the train goes into emergency. When the train has stopped, an inspection finds that several cars in the train have been blown off the track and into the surrounding field. The track has been damaged, and it will take Engineering about 24 hours to repair the track. A nearby customer’s building is also damaged and will be out of service for at least three months while they rebuild.

Service InterruptionThe first of the three departments that we’ll discuss is Service

Interruption, which handles a wide variety of situations. This desk usually has two managers on duty and is staffed 24 hours a day. With their considerable experience handling service interruptions, these managers know what questions to ask and whom to contact to report an incident.

Frequently, the trick dispatcher contacts the Service Interruption desk to relate information that crews have called in, then Service Interruption notifies the various departments that need to dispatch people to handle the situation. Among those that may be notified in the Network Operations Center (NOC) are the assistant general superintendent, Maintenance of Way desk, Signal desk, NOC Mechanical and Assets Protection. In the field, the focus is on contacting the Operations field personnel, and if necessary, they contact the state and/or federal authorities for that territory, depending on the magnitude of the incident.

Service Interruption has other responsibilities as well. They manage the daily coordination of a number of reports, track certain types of train delays, and put out voice mails every day regarding how we are doing operationally.

Division officers can help the Service Interruption desk by keeping them copied on weekly division duty rosters via email. Updated duty rosters help the desk keep their phone lists accurate, which reduces the possibility of the wrong person being called at 2 a.m.

Service SchedulingService Scheduling handles the

changes to active schedules during short-term or temporary situations affecting train movement, as requested by the assistant general superintendent, corridor superintendent, chief dispatchers and Service Interruption desk. Managers staff this desk 24 hours a day. One person handles the coal trains on the system, and the other person(s) handles activating train schedules, annulments, consolidations, detours, blocking and building foreign train symbols for foreign trains to run on BNSF track and for our trains to run on foreign railroad. Service Scheduling also handles approving routine High-Wide (HIWIDE) movements. This desk handles the temporary changes to the TSP (Transportation Service Plan) and non-TSP traffic. Items that can affect the daily plan are congestion, crew shortages, weather, derailments, track work and changes in volume.

In our twister scenario, several trains that would have been routed over the affected track during the time it is out of

service may need to be detoured over an alternate route or staged on line. Service Scheduling also builds the schedules for the unit trains and work trains that will bring the ballast, rail, ties and other necessary equipment to the affected area. Certain trains may be selected for delayed departure, and this desk may be asked to update the departure times on them also.

You can help out the Service Scheduling desk by routing any requests to modify train schedules through your chief dispatcher, corridor superintendent or assistant general superintendent, which keeps these groups in the loop about what’s happening in the field. Once they have the request for a change, they’ll submit the request to Service Scheduling.

Service designService Design develops the plan for our TSP traffic. They are staffed

with experienced managers who represent different BNSF business units, and they are on call 24/7.

Service Design handles the development of, and changes to, the base schedules and long-term or permanent situations that affect train movement. Service Design decisions to change the TSP are based upon review of traffic forecasts and knowledge about new customer shipments from Marketing and analysis of current field operations gained from information provided to them from NOC Operations, field personnel and customers. During a situation like our tornado, they would become involved in re-planning service for the customer who won’t be needing service for an extended period of time by modifying the locals and potentially rescheduling and/or re-blocking road switchers or merchandise trains through the affected area.

With the recent hurricanes, Service Design worked non-stop developing a plan for our traffic so we could continue to work around the damage that had taken place and service our customers.

In summary, while each of these Service departments is separate, they work together to support effective execution of the day-to-day service plan. The primary difference is when they become involved with the plan and the subsequent changes to the plan. Service Interruption is brought in immediately when there is an interruption in service. Service Scheduling is brought in when there are temporary changes to the TSP and non-TSP traffic, and Service Design handles both the development of the TSP to accommodate movement of existing and new traffic and the development of service recovery plans that involve changes to blocking tables and train schedules.

– Tank & Hopper

Who Ya Gonna Call? Rail Sleuths ‘Tank’ and ‘Hopper’ to the Rescue

10 RAILwAy I JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2006

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25FEB 05 MAR 05 JUN 05 SEP 05 OCT 05 DEC 05JAN 05 MAY 05APR 05 JUL 05 AUG 05 NOV 05 JAN 06

BnSf Units handledYear-to-date through Jan. 21, 2006, and Jan. 20, 2005 2006 2005

2006 BnSf Velocity Goals & PerformanceYear-to-date through Jan. 29, 2006 Actual YTD

Locomotive miles per day 286.8

Agricultural car miles per day 164.0

Merchandise car miles per day 109.2

Coal cycle index 134.1%

Intermodal stack transit days 5.2

Intermodal trailer transit days 2.7

Coal 135,221 120,385Agricultural Products 56,317 52,125Industrial 89,929 86,903Consumer 297,411 281,609System 578,878 541,022

BnSf Performance Measures

BnSf Stock12-month through Jan. 24, 2006 S&P 500 Index BNSF

BnSf Reportable InjuriesYear-to-date through Jan. 23, 2006

2006

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BnSf remains committed to safety and will provide employees the best quality possible in safety boots to protect against injury. As in previous years, employees will receive a BNSF subsidy for one pair of approved BNSF safety boots every 12 months. As always, the 12 months is a rolling time period unique to each employee, based on the employee’s last subsidized purchase. Also, as in previous years, the BNSF subsidy is available for a wide variety of boots; for the 2006 program, 50 styles of boots are available, including six women’s styles.

However, employees should be aware of a few changes in the program. First, Timberland has been added as a BNSF vendor to provide employees more choices. To find a Timberland distributor near your home, call 1-800-445-5545. A second change is that employees will receive a flat $110 reimbursement,

which includes the purchase or resole/remanufacture of White’s Boots,

effective on purchases on or after Feb. 15. This is a change from BNSF’s former policy, which

reimbursed 80 percent of the cost of the boots, while the employee was

responsible for the remaining 20 percent. This new approach is more equitable to all employees, ensuring that each employee receives the same level of reimbursement.

other features of the 2006 Safety footwear program are: • Employees who select boots costing less than $110 per pair will actually receive an improved benefit under the new program. That is, for boots costing less than $110, the full purchase price will be reimbursed rather than the 80 percent reimbursement that applied under the previous program.

• Employees purchasing boots costing less than $110 per pair, however, will not be entitled to apply the remaining amount to a subsequent purchase. The cost

difference cannot be applied toward the purchase of the employee’s next pair of boots or other merchandise offered by the boot maker.

• Boots that meet Canadian (CSA) standards are only for use by the small number of Canadian BNSF employees. Non-Canadian employees who purchase these boots will not be reimbursed.

To receive the subsidy, employees must still use a voucher signed by their supervisor. An employee is not eligible for a subsidy or reimbursement for any cash payments made at time of purchase. Safety footwear suppliers for 2006 are Wolverine/Caterpillar Footwear, Timberland, Red Wing and White’s Boots.

If you have additional questions about BNSF’s Safety Footwear Program, check with your supervisor or visit BNSF’s Intranet site at http://bnsfweb.bnsf.com/departments/safety/safety_footwear_page.html.

Safety Boot Policy Changes Announced

BnSf has updated its Safety Boot policy for 2006. The updated policy takes effect feb. 15, 2006, and applies to all boots purchased on or after that date.

Locomotive Velocity = Total locomotive miles on 3,000+ HP/ Total locomotive count (average miles per day per locomotive)

Agricultural and Merchandise Car Velocity = Car miles / active cycle days

Coal cycle index percentage = Actual total cycle time / Plan cycle time (starts with the time the cars are placed for loading, followed by transportation time to the utility, unloading and transportation of the empty cars back to mine). Excludes foreign road delay and utility outage delay

Intermodal Service average transit days = Average time between cutoff and deramp or interchange delivery (transit time starts at cutoff or first train departure if cutoff is after first train departure)

fuller, 24, is currently recovering at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. He was wounded Sept. 3 while clearing a road in Dora, a small community in south Baghdad, of improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Insurgents detonated an IED about eight feet away from him, severing the femoral vein in his left leg and blinding him in his right eye. He also suffered a collapsed lung and numerous other injuries.

When the bomb exploded, Fuller said he thought that mud had simply flown into his eye. He had the sensation of being crushed, which he later found out was due to his collapsed lung. The blast also blew out his front teeth.

Nonetheless, Fuller remained standing during the blast and even returned suppressive fire. He then walked out of the smoke and debris generated in the fallout, leading his colleagues to believe he was OK. But a few seconds later, he dropped his weapon and collapsed into the arms of his squad leader. “I had no illusions about my condition and assumed that I was going to die,” he says.

Fortunately, members of Fuller’s unit were well trained in first aid and able to suppress the bleeding in his leg. A Medivac helicopter quickly arrived, and in just 22 minutes’ time he was in surgery. Over the course of the next 72 hours, Fuller was flown to Germany and then to the United States – which he learned from others because he remained unconscious for more than 12 days after undergoing surgery in Baghdad.

Receiving the care package from BNSF’s Los Angeles employees was a big surprise, says Fuller: “The box was huge. I could barely get it back to my room. It was like Christmas. It was a wonderful experience.”

The model locomotive was perhaps the icing on the cake because Fuller had manned the same type of locomotive over Cajon Pass, BNSF’s main route between San Bernardino and Barstow, Calif. So excited was he about the model, he immediately called his dad, who is a railroad buff, to tell him about it. “My dad is the person who originally encouraged me to apply for a job with BNSF,” he says.

In addition to the care package, Fuller got a visit in early December from Chairman, President and CEO Matt Rose. “It was like getting to

meet the President of the United States,” says Fuller. “He [Rose] is a very, very nice man. He gave me an iPod. I really appreciated getting to see him, and I appreciate everything BNSF is doing for me.”

Continued support will be helpful during Fuller’s recovery. Though his eye isn’t likely to improve, he is taking things in stride. “I’m just happy to be alive. Every day is like a new lease on life,” he says. “I’m not missing an arm or leg, and I can function on my own. Lots of guys here at the hospital are worse off.”

Fuller’s resolve is strong. In a letter he wrote in early December to fellow employees, he recounted the phases of his recovery: “The last real step of my hospital recovery came after the doctors said that I may have problems for the rest of my life walking. That day I started walking as

much as I could. The following day, the doctors said that they were worried that it wouldn’t be weight-bearing so I started carrying my food tray around.”

Fuller will probably have to remain at Walter Reed Army Medical Center as an outpatient for six months to a year, he estimates. During that time, doctors will continue to remove shrapnel from his leg bit by bit and literally piece his body back together as best they can, including his teeth. He has managed to wean himself off painkillers and has relearned to walk and drive. Already he’s doing pushups.

Still, his days in the hospital have been some of the most

difficult of his life. To make matters worse, his mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in October and had to undergo surgery.

But to say Fuller is taking things in stride would be an understatement. “I have had my ups and down, but I will say that I am a better man for having had this experience,” Fuller wrote in his letter.

“When I first called John at the hospital, my intention was to lift his spirits,” says Rob Reilly, BNSF’s general manager in Los Angeles. “However, by the time our call had ended, he had lifted mine.”

If you would like to drop a note to John Fuller, send it in care of:

Mologne House Hotel, Room 240Walter Reed Army Medical Center6900 Georgia Avenue, NW Building 20Washington D.C., 20307-5001

BnSf’s Los Angeles division recently put together a care package in conjunction with operation Iraqi freedom – deliverable to one of their own. At the end of november, employees mailed cards, a “Get well” banner and an ho AC4400Cw Ge locomotive (replete with BnSf’s new paint scheme) to conductor John fuller, injured in Iraq.

well wishes Sent To Injured BnSf employee-SoldierBy amy Ray

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RAILwAy I JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2006 11

Conductor John Fuller, above right, was recently injured in Iraq. BNSF’s Los Angeles Division employees sent him a care package during his recovery at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

PRSRT STDU.S. POSTAGE

P A I DFORT WORTH, TXPERMIT NO. 2528

Burlington Northern Santa Fe CorporationP.O. Box 961057Fort Worth, Texas 76161-0057

PRSRT STDU.S. POSTAGE

P A I DFORT WORTH, TXPERMIT NO. 2528

T h e e m p l o y e e m a g a z i n e o f T e a m B n S f J a n U a R y / f e B R U a R y 2 0 0 6

Railroad lantern Model locomotive Timetables for the 13 BNSF divisions (on CD) and Amtrak timetableOperating Rule Book, Air Brake & Train Handling Rules; Safety Rules; and System Special InstructionsBlackberry (wireless handheld communication device)bnsf.com CDBNSF hat, T-shirt Personal Protective Equipment: gloves, earplugs, safety glasses Switch list holderA 2005 silver dollar to be given to the 2030 BNSF president10-year anniversary merchandise (fans, decal, map)

New BNSF logo brochure (locomotive cut-out)Portable locomotive control technology (Beltpac) with related article BNSF phone book Guest book with names of Family Day attendees Photographs of Topeka Shops employees who built capsuleBNSF 2005 calendarBNSF system mapTravel coffee mug2004 annual report“10 Years & Rolling” Sept./Oct. 2005 issue of Railway

Celebrating Success issue (2004 employee awards and achievements)Switch key and lockBNSF Today article from merger anniversary of Sept. 22, 2005Leaders Count book (published in conjunction with 10th anniversary of BNSF merger)BNSF stock certificate mock-upReverser keyAutomatic Equipment Identification tag (with BNSF “09302005”)Hammerhead (portable computer used by conductors and engine foremen)Vision and Values brochureLeadership Model“The History of BNSF” issue of Railway

Last September, a time capsule was unveiled during Fort Worth’s annual Family Day as part of the “BNSF: 10 Years and Rolling” anniversary celebration. The capsule is designed to recognize our heritage and will help educate future generations about BNSF Railway and its influence. It will be opened in 25 years in the year 2030.

Designed and built by a team of employees from Topeka, Kan., Mechanical, the stainless-steel capsule weighs a hefty 185 pounds and is 4-feet long, 2-feet wide and 1-foot tall.

Currently, the time capsule and its contents are on display in Fort Worth. When it is officially sealed, it will be placed on BNSF’s campus with a plaque attached to indicate to future BNSF employees the contents and directions for its opening. The items selected to be placed in the capsule were suggested by employees across the system as well as in Fort Worth. The items represent life in today’s world of railroading, especially the last decade. Thanks to everyone who made a contribution. Here is a list of the time capsule contents:

BNSF police uniform patches and badgeBNSF and Team BNSF lapel pins2005 BNSF Railway Special commemorative magnet“10 Years and Rolling” DVDFort Worth Star-Telegram article about BNSFBNSF flagCompass keepsake (representing termination of BN train reporting system)Raco wrench and nuts (used by Signal personnel)Supervisor Guidelines for drug and alcohol testing

1995-2005: Time in a Box