Consultant issues initial report on safety at Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern Railway yesterday announced the independent consultant hired to evaluate the railroad’s safety culture has issued an initial report of its findings.

In May, NS appointed Atkins Nuclear Secured (ANS), a member of SNC-Lavalin Group, to conduct the review. Reporting directly to NS President and CEO Alan Shaw, ANS is evaluating the railroad’s safety training programs, employee engagement, oversight and monitoring, and communications protocols and practices. U.S. Navy Adm. Kirk Donald (retired) led ANS' work and met with the NS leadership team to discuss its findings and recommendations, Shaw said in a letter sent yesterday to the company’s employees.

The consultant was brought on board in response to the Feb. 3 derailment of an NS hazmat train in East Palestine, Ohio.

"Admiral Donald and his team had independence in their work, with direct access to meet and speak with hundreds of Norfolk Southern employees at all levels and across all the regions we serve," Shaw wrote. "ANS observed railroad operations in progress across our network, touring our facilities and meeting with presidents, general chairmen, and local chairmen from every Norfolk Southern union to ensure their perspectives and voices were heard and reflected."

ANS recommended that NS implement the following:
• strengthened collaboration with local labor leaders;
• enhanced post-incident continuous improvement processes;
• invest in the locations where our employees show up to work;
• an expanded field assessment team.

The ANS evaluation was just one part of the Class I;s efforts to improve its safety culture. Shaw is also setting up a "team of internal experts and leaders to further identify areas where we can enhance our culture and operations, ensure appropriate follow-up is completed and implement recommendations from ANS and others," he wrote.

"This Safety Implementation Task Force will report directly to me and have the full scope and authority necessary to drive positive momentum. They will be charged with identifying and removing roadblocks so that we can quickly move from recommendation to implementation, incorporating feedback from our craft employees and labor leaders as we work on these important initiatives," Shaw wrote.

Shaw’s letter can be read here.

Meanwhile, NS also announced yesterday that it will grant East Palestine nearly $4.3 million to overhaul its municipal drinking water system. Upgrades will include new engineering and carbon filtration systems and state-of-the-art technology.

The $4.3 million commitment includes $661,481 already reimbursed to the village for new carbon filters and initial engineering, as well as $3.64 million to fund additional engineering and new filtration technology, and infrastructure. NS will continue conversations with the village to determine if additional work is needed, company officials said in a press release.

"We worked with community leaders and their outside experts to develop the best path forward," said Shaw. "Thanks to their feedback, these infrastructure upgrades will help ensure clean drinking water remains accessible for East Palestine's current and future generations."