United Rail Passenger Alliance

Volume 3 Number 35

1. In a surprise move to Amtrak watchers, Amtrak’s Board of Directors hired a new president and CEO today, despite the fact there is no principal Amtrak shareholder in the form of a permanent United States Secretary of Transportation or a fully populated Amtrak board.Alexander Kummant, formerly of Union Pacific Railroad is the new chief steward of Amtrak. Here is Amtrak’s press release:
   

   WASHINGTON - The Amtrak Board of Directors today appointed Alexander Kummant as President and CEO. The veteran railroad and industrial executive will assume duties September 12.

   Kummant previously served as a Regional Vice President of the Union Pacific Railroad, overseeing 6,000 transportation, engineering, construction, mechanical, and other employees supporting an 8,000-mile rail network. He also served as the Union Pacific’s Vice President and General Manager of Industrial Products, a $2 billion revenue business. In leading both units, Kummant was responsible for substantially improved customer service, on-time delivery of client products, and significant gains in financial and operational performance.

   Additionally at Union Pacific, Kummant held the role of Vice President of Premium Operations, overseeing the intermodal and automotive network performance.

   Most recently, Kummant served as the Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Komatsu America Corporation, a division of the second largest supplier of construction equipment worldwide. He has a continuing record as an adaptable change agent in diverse environments.

   Kummant’s first job on the railroad came at age 18 in Lorain, Ohio, working on a track crew for the Lake Terminal Railroad at the U.S. Steel Lorain Works.

   “Alex Kummant has the outstanding credentials and experience to lead a changing Amtrak that is more customer-focused and fiscally responsible,”said Amtrak Chairman David M. Laney. “His appointment fulfills the board’s commitment to select an extraordinarily strong and capable leader for Amtrak’s future, building on the growing national desire for more and improved passenger rail service.”

   Kummant fills a position that has been held by David J. Hughes on an interim basis since November 2005. Formerly Chief Engineer of Amtrak, Hughes will continue to serve with the railroad in a yet to be specified capacity. “For the past nine months, David Hughes has stepped in and performed exceptionally in leading our strategic reforms and operational improvements,” said Laney. “On behalf of the Amtrak Board of Directors, he has our deepest admiration and respect, and we are delighted that he will continue to play an important role in Amtrak’s future.”

   A native of Ohio, Kummant holds a B.S. degree in mechanical engineering from Case Western Reserve University, a Master’s degree in manufacturing engineering from Carnegie Mellon University and an M.B.A. from Stanford University. He is married to Kathleen Regan Kummant, a former senior executive with the Santa Fe and BNSF railroads.

   The Board of Directors of Amtrak was assisted in its search by the Washington D.C. office of Heidrick & Struggles, Inc.

   Mr. Kummant’s selection is interesting in many ways. His primary railroad executive experience was with the Union Pacific Railroad, which has been described by many as Amtrak’s least willing and least friendly host railroad. Perhaps his addition to the Amtrak executive suite will provide a direct pipeline to UP’s executive suite and a better understanding between the two companies as to the obligations each have on behalf of the passengers of Amtrak.

   When examining the qualifications of Mr. Kummant listed in the press release, straight down the line he fills the check list the board of directors created for the next president; a list that included the ability to work as an adaptable change agent in diverse environments, a strong understanding of the financial side of the business, and operational experience. Mr. Kummant fits all of those qualifications, plus he has an engineering and construction background, which highly qualifies him to deal with the infrastructure issues of the Northeast Corridor.

   An exciting aspect of Mr. Kummant’s qualifications is his most recent position of Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Komatsu America Corporation, a division of the second largest supplier of construction equipment worldwide. Notice the word “marketing” in there, a very important word. Mr. Kummant understands some reasonable and practical effort must be made to attract customers/passengers to a business. What a relief to have a new president and CEO with this background.

   Perhaps the most outstanding point about Mr. Kummant is what is lacking … no background in public transit. Mr. Kummant is most definitely a railroader, and not a trolley operator. He will not have preconceived notions of the alleged benefits of bare bones coaches with plastic seating and harsh lights stopping at unmanned stations. We don’t know where Mr. Kummant stands on expansion of the national long distance system. We have to believe he and the board understand the importance of the national system and the future success of the company will come from the long distance system, not disjointed and high expense corridors.

   A fascinating aspect is Mrs. Kummant, Kathleen Regan Kummant. Mrs. Kummant was a former senior executive with the Santa Fe and BNSF Railroads, UP’s arch rival. If Mrs. Kummant worked for Santa Fe when Mike Haverty was president of the company, we know she was highly qualified. One can presume dinner table conversation will be lively.

   What do we bring from this? The Amtrak Board of Directors, under the leadership of Chairman David Laney (even in its present reduced state because of too many vacancies) has done a good job of selecting the next chief steward of Amtrak. We all need to judge Mr. Kummant for his accomplishments, and how he will help fulfill the broad vision of the Amtrak board and its determination to bring Amtrak to a point where it is no longer a financial and political cripple.

   Welcome, Mr. Kummant and Godspeed in your new challenge. Now, please, just tell us so we will get it right, exactly how do you pronounce your last name?

2. It is very important to take a moment and talk about the man who has held Amtrak together since the merciful departure of David Gunn. David J. Hughes, the former Chief Engineer of Amtrak will continue to serve Amtrak in a yet to be defined capacity. Mr. Hughes has been an excellent interim leader for Amtrak, picking up many of the broken pieces left by Mr. Gunn, and starting to make incremental progress on many of Amtrak’s problems. Much of what Mr. Hughes has accomplished is not outwardly evident to Amtrak’s passengers and many employees. However, Mr. Hughes made some critical personnel changes at the top of the company, and has helped quell the overall bad atmosphere at the company while an orderly search for a new, permanent president could be conducted by the board.Thank you, Mr. Hughes for all you have accomplished. It has not gone unnoticed. We know you will continue to accomplish much for Amtrak in your next position with the company.
3. So, there is a new kid on the block, and he has a shiny new football. What should he do with the football? Here’s a list of things for Mr. Kummant and the Amtrak Board of Directors to consider:
   1. Continue to work to bring an orderly state to Amtrak’s financial house through new and better accounting and reporting systems. Everything else that may be accomplished will all depend on having reliable numbers and hard, unbiased information.
   2. Look strongly at Amtrak’s relationship with its host railroads and work hard to improve those relationships so both parties prosper. If Amtrak needs to pay more to achieve a fair market price for use of private freight rails, that should be a strong consideration. Both sides need to feel that operating Amtrak trains is a winning proposition; as long as the host railroads feel the federal government (Amtrak) is confiscating their property one passenger train at a time, little or no progress will be made.
   3. Look inward at employees on all levels. The freight railroads, from whence Mr. Kummant arrives, have learned how to trim staffs and operate trains more efficiently. Amtrak needs to do the same thing, including learning how to work positively with its unions and instigate contracts that recognize the value of each employee. Most of Amtrak’s senior executives need to be replaced, the sooner the better. Everyone there has a history, and most of the histories are not good. We see some bright spots (see below about Florida service operation this week during Tropical Storm Ernesto), but too many of Amtrak’s senior and middle managers have gotten away with corporate murder for too long. Bring in a new cadre of executives who are qualified and compensated equivalent to freight railroad executives, and let them make much needed changes. Bring in a new marketing team that understands passengers and the needs of all of the system, beyond the NEC and Pacific Surfliners. Bring in people who understand accountability, that often maligned word “profit” (which is a very good word), and passenger service above and beyond all else.Make an absolute qualification for continuing or new employment at Amtrak an understanding and desire for good passenger service. No more grumpy onboard employees or station agents. No more employees that never should have been hired in the first place. No more employees with individual agendas - just employees with the single focused agenda of providing the best possible service to the highest number of passengers, all in a gracious atmosphere.
   4. Continue to repair relations with Congress and the Bush Administration. David Gunn left a tarnished legacy of contempt and tartness that accomplished little other than entertainment value. David Laney and David Hughes have proven this budget year that professionalism when dealing with Washington is far more important than breathless headlines and pronouncements of doom and gloom. Pay Mr. Hughes the compliment of continuing his good work on Capitol Hill.
   5. Restore the Sunset Limited east of New Orleans. No good arguments have been made for it not to be running, other than Amtrak doesn’t have the will to live up to its commitment to the cities and towns along the route to provide a connection to the rest of the Amtrak network. Look at all of the national system, and decide how to make it more dense, with more frequencies, serving more passengers. Stop making poor decisions, like the current proposal to drop one of two daily trains in and out of Williamsburg, Virginia as 2007 will mark the 400th anniversary of the founding of nearby Jamestown, and the beginning of Colonial Virginia. Jamestown and Williamsburg are planning for one million visitors in 2007, many of them by rail. Cutting one of only two daily trains in and out of Williamsburg and the Hampton Roads (Norfolk, Newport News, Portsmouth, and Chesapeake) area is not a wise move.
   6. Look at the nearly 700 pieces of passenger rolling stock in storage because of wreck damage, out of date inspections, or other reasons, and figure out how to get these millions of dollars worth of assets and revenue generators back out on the railroad. Time after time it has been demonstrated that very few companies cut their way to financial health. Amtrak is no exception. While many changes need to be made, at the same time “more trains to more places” needs to be Amtrak’s unofficial motto.
   7. Realize that passenger rail, as opposed to transit, is a people business, which relies on station agents, safety employees on trains, and reservations agents among other jobs. Unmanned stations, while understandable in some locations, lose more business than the money saved by not paying the salaries of station agents. Stations are an integral part of every community, where local residents go to make travel plans, purchase tickets, check baggage, and safely board trains. Unmanned stations provide none of these benefits. While about half of Amtrak’s ticketing is now done by the Internet, that does not make up for the lost potential of manned stations. The Internet is not an acceptable substitute of real, live, smiling and informative people.
   8. Make intelligent decisions about the future of sleeping car and food service on long distance trains. Look at the results of this summer’s Empire Builder “experiment” (which really just provides a level of service formerly found on Amtrak elsewhere) and see how many passengers liked traditional passenger railroad service. Understand that all long distance trains deserve the same attention and amenities found on the Empire Builder. Understand many Amtrak employees are willing to make long distance travel a pleasurable experience with morally admirable food if only given the chance by Amtrak management.
   9. Understand Amtrak’s heritage and history. Those who don’t know history are doomed to repeat it. Amtrak has a long history of making dumb and costly mistakes with little or no consequence to its managers and senior level employees. Look back at what has been done before, and embrace what was good, and discard what was bad. Amtrak’s heritage is a proud one, of passenger service that served our country well before the jet airplane and Interstate highway system. There is still a place today for long distance passenger service in our domestic transportation network, but Amtrak sadly remains our nation’s best kept secret. It’s time for Amtrak to start shouting about itself from the mountain tops, and get over its corporate inferiority complex that it can’t be an important part of our country’s transportation system.
   10. Continue to work towards isolating the Northeast Corridor from the rest of the Amtrak system so everyone will have a realistic understanding of how Amtrak’s finances actually work. It’s important for Amtrak to understand it was originally designed to serve all Americans, not just parts of the country on the Right and Left Coasts and clustered around the Great Lakes.
4. As mentioned above, as of this writing on Tuesday evening, August 29th, Tropical Storm Ernesto is making its way into South Florida, maintenance and crew base homes of the Silver Meteor and Silver Star. Many will remember last hurricane season’s shameful cut and run strategy by Amtrak, often leaving travelers stranded in hurricane areas by shutting down rail service far too early in anticipation of storms.Here is Amtrak’s internal advisory on Tropical Storm Ernesto. What a different a year and some new people at the top makes.
   

   System Operations
   Flash Report
   DATE: August 28, 2006
   TO: Distribution
   FROM: Jon Tainow
   SUBJECT: Tropical Storm Ernesto

   Report No: No.1 5:00PM August 28, 2006

   Service Disruption Scenario

   As of 2:00PM Tropical Storm Ernesto is approximately 15 miles east-southeast of Holguin, Cuba. It has a poorly defined center and is moving toward the northwest at approximately 10 miles per hour. This motion is expected to continue over the next 24 hours. Maximum sustained winds are 40 miles per hour. Tropical Storm force winds extend outward for 70 miles. The storm is expected to strengthen after the center moves over the waters to the north of Cuba tonight.

   The storm is expected to make landfall as a possible Category 1 Hurricane late Tuesday night/Wednesday morning, August 30th at the southern tip of Florida near Miami Beach and continue moving northeast along the coast effecting Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.

   CSX Operating Plans

   CSX will remove crossing gates on the Miami Subdivision (Miami to West Palm Beach, FL) beginning 12:00PM, Tuesday, August 29th. They will have generators, ballast, and personnel ready to mobilize after the storm passes.

   Operating Plan for August 28, 2006

   Train 91(28) (Silver Star) will operate New York, NY to Orlando, FL only. Alternate transportation will operate for those passengers destined for Kissimmee, Lakeland and Tampa. Regular thruway bus service will operate normal.

   Train 97(28) (Silver Meteor) will operate New York, NY to Orlando, FL only. Alternate transportation will operate for those passengers destined for Kissimmee only. Regular thruway bus service will operate normal.

   The remaining Florida service will operate normal.

   Operating Plan for August 29, 2006

   Silver Service Trains 98(29) and 92(29) will operate normal from Miami, FL. An extra coach will be added to each train based on availability at Miami.

   Auto Trains 52(29) and 53(29) will operate normal.

   Silver Service Trains 91(29) and 97(29) will operate New York, NY to Orlando, FL only with no alternate transportation south of Orlando.

   All other service operates normal.

   Operating Plan for August 30, 2006

   Silver Service Trains 98(30) and 92(30) will originate at Orlando, FL. There are tentative plans, based on bus availability and weather conditions, to offer alternate transportation for passengers at Tampa, Lakeland and Kissimmee scheduled to board Train 92(30) and passengers at Kissimmee scheduled to board Train 98(30). No other alternate transportation will be offered.

   No other service adjustments have been made for August 30 at this time, however, it is possible that additional adjustments will be necessary based on changes on the path and severity of the storm.

   Wow. Did you notice some of the details above? Amtrak ADDED an additional coach out of Miami if equipment was available. Trains continued to run in and out of other stations in Florida (such as Orlando, the single, largest vacation destination in the world). Some alternative transportation was offered to non-storm threatened areas of the state. It’s hard to believe this is the same railroad as last year, when the order of the day was to ignore the needs of passengers, lock the door, and go home. Thank you, David Hughes and Jon Tainow for understanding the obligations of your railroad.