The move, which union officials say affected 20 to 100 jobs, is UP’s latest in the Kansas City area. In October UP closed Neff Yard, its hump yard in Kansas City, Mo., which resulted in the elimination of about 200 jobs.
UP in 2019 idled the humps at four classification yards, consolidated yard operations in several key terminals, and has been moving tonnage on fewer but longer trains.
Under its shift to a Precision Scheduled Railroading operating model, UP is reducing its reliance on major terminals by pre-blocking traffic at origin, having road trains perform more work en route, and doing more block-swapping.
Since adopting its Unified Plan 2020 in October of 2018, UP has idled the humps at its yards in Hinkle, Ore., Pine Bluff, Ark., Kansas City, Mo., and Chicago. It also has curtailed yard operations in Salt Lake City, Denver, San Antonio, Alexandria, La., Salem, Ill., and Butler, Wis.
The railroad also paused construction of a new Brazos hump yard that was being built near Hearne, Texas. Executives have said the railroad has reduced car handlings enough that it still does not need the additional switching capacity Brazos Yard would bring to Texas, where chemical, plastics, and cross-border traffic are all growing.
In November UP executives said that by Dec. 31 they expected the railroad’s workforce to be at least 18% below the levels of the fourth quarter of 2018.
That translates into a cutback of nearly 2,500 positions in the final three months of 2019, which would bring total headcount at UP to around 34,191.
Overall last year, UP cut about 10% of its workforce due to the combined impact of volume declines and efficiency gains under its shift to Precision Scheduled Railroading. UP’s volume was down 6% in 2019, largely due to a 16% plunge in coal traffic and a 7% decline in intermodal.
In a statement issued on Friday, a UP spokesman said the railroad reduced operations at Armourdale but declined to provide specifics on job losses.
Railroads are in an endless death spiral…..lose business, cut costs, lose more business and cut more costs. This is stupid…..increase business.
In the long run, the monster trains will not work except for bulk commodities. Merchandise will continue to leave the railroad if they insist on try to operate the huge trains. Makes no sense. Having over the road locomotives switch in route as part of PSR, ridiculous waste of resources.
These monster trains aren’t compatible with Amtrak trains. Too long for some sidings, and very time consuming when they have a broken knuckle or hotbox!
They are happy with a shrinking railroad. Less business need less overhead and employees.
Trim the fat for profits and then slowly nosedive into a pit of Red sea
Precision scheduling doing more work in route?? so each switch move takes exactly 3.4 minutes. I bet.
Noticed in recent TRAINS Forum and Newswire sites UPRR is advertising for “New Hires” over their system…What is going on? Dropping and cutting jobs and hiring in other areas…. Seems to be a case that Operations and Personnel are not talking to each other??? Or maybe, some attempt at Contract ‘Busting”?
Just seems a little strange….
When they declare bankruptcy.
Does Union Pacific have a yard of any sort in Missouri any more? I know this one was in Kansas though.
Precision is not the reason they are closing yards. They are LOSING business left and right and covering up this fact by claiming the reason to close yards is related tp Precision Railroading. When will this charade end?
Let’s see. Is railroading the secure job I want for my family? NOT!
Just incredible…..When you THOUGHT you had seen the ultimate of stupidity, we get this from UP. I’ll always say it was a mistake to let UP have the SP/DRGW and they shouldn’t have BOTH the Katy and the MoPac. A railroad that simply got too big for its britches.
The economy is healthy all the while the railroads are following the contribution of the horse and buggy to said economy. Translated: Lets run off even more business.