Commentary
Railroad Safety is Not the Problem
Written by David Nahass, Financial Editor
Railroad safety is such an easy target that Last Week Tonight, a “news lite” program, deems it episode-worthy. That’s a real concern. (YouTube screenshot)
FINANCIAL EDGE, RAILWAY AGE JANUARY 2024 ISSUE: The marketing genius that was P.T. Barnum coined the oft repeated phrase “There is no such thing as bad publicity.” One only needs to search the origins of fame of some “stars” such as Kim Kardashian and Rob Lowe to see Barnum’s timeless genius.
September’s “Financial Edge” highlighted increasing safety related scrutiny facing North American railroads. An inability to maintain a clean house has attracted the attention of the mainstream media. Even genius has its failings.
The Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine and a few other safety-centric news events put a bullseye on North American rail. Political attention on the East Palestine derailment made railroad operations an easy target for mainstream media. The Wall Street Journal and New York Times (and online publications like conspiracy-theory-touting Propublica) published several stories that negatively highlighted service-related practices and pilloried the late E. Hunter Harrison as the “mastermind” engineering a 21st century Crédit Mobilier scandal—bilking investors of billions and sacrificing safety for profit.
The spotlight just got brighter. On Dec. 10, HBO’s news satire program Last Week Tonight ran a 27-minute episode on failing railroad safety (watch below). Host John Oliver (who covers various topics, e.g. home schooling, government surveillance, $148 million man Rudy Giuliani) gets into topics that are easy hits with ample media outlet coverage. Oliver is not Woodward or Bernstein; Last Week Tonight is not CBS 60 Minutes (which itself aired a negatively slanted and error-filled report on PTC a few years ago). Don’t expect a future Pulitzer.
But therein lies the rub. Railroad safety is such an easy target that Last Week Tonight, a “news lite” program, deems it episode-worthy. That’s a real concern.
The irony is that rail safety is not the problem. What is? It’s railroad management’s seeming indifference to the outward appearance and public opinion of the railroad industry. Experienced rail professionals will quibble with Last Week Tonight’s experts and conclusions (never mind the ongoing exhumation of Mr. Harrison’s legacy six years after his passing). That’s nice, but read the memo: You’re in the minority.
North American rail needs an image makeover. Ads on CNBC and I-Bank transportation conference rah-rah sessions aren’t enough. North American rail needs a New Year’s resolution: Put your house in order and change the way people think about rail.
Perhaps Miss Kardashian or Mr. Lowe can recommend a PR specialist?
