Possible relocation of railroad station could mean economic boost to Pulaski

By BILL MARDIS, Editor Emeritus

Somerset — Possible relocation of a railroad crew change station from Danville to the Tateville-Antioch area south of Burnside has potential of being a sizable economic boost to Pulaski County.

John G. Prather Jr., attorney for Norfolk Southern Railway Corporation, said the crew change station consists of a double spur for trains to pull off and switch crews, and a small building to serve as a waiting area for crew members. The southern part of the property acquired for the change station is adjacent to Kingsford Company property near the racetrack, Prather said.

“The crew change station can accommodate as many as they need ... it could be up to 80 crew members a day,” Prather said. He indicated the project is “well along” and could be operational in “ ... a matter of weeks.” Pulaski Fiscal Court and Burnside City Council both recently granted easements to allow realignment of a road to facilitate construction of the change station.

However, Jody Lassiter, executive director of the Boyle County Industrial Foundation, said every effort is being made to retain the change station in Danville. He also said his information from Norfolk Southern is that the change in location is not a done deal; that it is a matter of negotiation between the company and union. A company spokesman in an e-mail response also told the Commonwealth Journal the change in location is not finalized.

A crew change station is exactly what it sounds like. It is where a train switches crews. Prather, whose law firm has represented Norfolk Southern for years, recalled that when trains were pulled by steam engines, crews changed at Danville and at Oakdale and Chattanooga in Tennessee. Now, with diesel engines and faster trains, crew switching is done at Danville.

Location of the change station near Burnside could be a boon to the economy, according to Prather. The change station likely would attract many railway crew members to this area so they can live near the crew-switching facility.

John Nelson, managing editor of the Danville Advocate Messenger, said the crew change station is an economic impacting facility in Boyle County. The Advocate Messenger, in a story published January 20, said Norfolk Southern is considering elimination of Danville as one of its crew change points. Word began circulating in mid-January that employees were told the company plans to relocate the crew change station to Burnside in Pulaski County, the newspaper said.

The Danville newspaper quoted Rodney Noakes, representative with the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, as saying the union has been served notice that the company has a proposal to do away with swapping trains in Danville. He told the newspaper that “... right now it is very early and nobody knows exactly what is going to happen.”

Noakes, who has worked for Norfolk Southern for the past 16 years, was quoted by the newspaper as saying between 150 and 160 workers are based out of Danville and could be affected. The union will begin negotiations with the company regarding the plans soon, Noakes reportedly said.

Robin Chapman, a spokesman for the Norfolk, Va.-based company, confirmed to the Advocate Messenger that Norfolk Southern is proposing the move but said Danville would continue to operate as a terminal and switch point.

Chapman told the Danville newspaper that employees would either be able to relocate or qualify for reverse lodging. The move likely would not happen for another 12 months, Chapman reportedly said.

Jolene Denham, a retired Norfolk Southern employee in Somerset, said several people in Pulaski County have to drive daily to the crew change station in Danville. Others, transferred to Knoxville when the trains’ dispatching nerve center was moved from Somerset in September 2002, still live here and drive to Knoxville daily.

Noting that Norfolk Southern workers are well paid, Prather said some crew members may buy homes in this area and become good citizens of this county. He praised Norfolk Southern officials who dealt with local people for necessary right-of-way for the project.

Norfolk Southern officials traditionally mince words when dealing with the media. The dispatch center and its numerous jobs at the Somerset depot were moved to Knoxville without fanfare or much press coverage in 2002. Reports are that city officials were unaware of the loss of jobs until after the old depot was vacant.

The pattern holds true with the response to the Commonwealth Journal from Chapman when asked about the crew change station:

“We are exploring lodging options in connection with our proposed interdivisional service between Cincinnati and Chattanooga. Nothing is final yet, so I can't provide any more details at this point,” Chapman e-mailed the Commonwealth Journal. Use of the word “lodging” in Chapman’s statement indicates the building proposed at the Pulaski County station might have lodging facilities for train crews.

Norfolk Southern Corporation (NS) is a holding company that owns and operates one of the nation's biggest railroad systems, the Norfolk Southern Railway Company. Its lines run through 22 states, mostly in the South and East, and extend into Ontario, Canada, covering approximately 21,600 miles of rail.

Southern Railway has a rich history in Somerset, often dubbed a “railroad town.” Southern operated Ferguson Shops that employed up to 600 men prior to and during World War II. The Shops was the economic engine of Pulaski County before closing about 1950 when railroads shifted from steam to diesel engines.

James A. “Onion” Eastham, former Somerset city councilor, worked at The Shops for nearly 10 years during the 1940s. He recalls the economic doomsday when The Shops closed and transferred work to Knoxville. The area was shortly revived with impoundment of Lake Cumberland, a tourist magnet.

Jenny Gilmore, a secretary and chief clerk for Norfork Southern, retired in 2001 a short while before the depot and its nerve center that controlled train operations between Cincinnati and Chattanooga and Louisville and St. Louis moved to Knoxville. She is one of many Somerset residents whose career and memories are tied to the railroad.

Few people are aware, but Norfolk Southern’s railroad right-of-way from Cincinnati through Somerset to Chattanooga is owned by trustees of the City of Cincinnati. The railroad was formerly called Cincinnati, New Orleans & Texas Pacific.

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