As Norfolk Southern Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, John Orr holds ultimate responsibility for every train on the Class I’s vast network, freight and passenger. Relationships between passenger carriers and their host freight railroads aren’t always harmonious, but NS has been working on improvements benefiting both.

“For several months now, we've been a top performer among Class I’s when it comes to host-responsible delay metrics—no small feat considering how much passenger service we host on our network,” Orr tells Railway Age Editor-in-Chief William C. Vantuono. “A more fluid network benefits everyone who touches our system, from customers to passenger services like Amtrak to communities throughout our system that experience fewer slow or stopped trains. There is a direct line between all our operational improvements and improvements in passenger rail hosting performance. And during the past two years we’ve forged effective partnerships with local and state passenger groups, from Pennsylvania to Virginia to North Carolina.”

Orr discusses why “a reliable, consistent team is necessary for reliable, consistent service,” initiatives for “building skills and capabilities of our railroaders” and “training generational railroaders.” He describes a “root cause analysis mentality” and the “war rooms” Operations has been utilizing. “Safety is the core of everything,” he stresses. “A safe railroad is an efficient railroad.”