Class I VitalRail leadership that engages all stakeholder groups will produce the solutions and teamwork needed to grow freight rail service for everyone’s benefit.
Class I railroads’ full collaboration with Class II and III railroads will enable them to provide increased local rail service that communities need for resilient, sustainable economic activity.
Convening rail industry, Wall Street, and Federal government leaders to establish new financial performance measures that support freight rail service growth will unleash all required capital.
Improving banks’ understanding of railroad financials, stability, collateral strength, and growth potential will greatly expand credit availability.
Positive, collaborative approaches to labor relations will enable productive staff and attract a growing workforce.
Rail growth in service to our long-term sustainability and quality of community life will uncork citizens’ vital input and pent-up appreciation for the value of freight railroading.
Introducing shippers to a reliable, flexible, expanding rail network will attract new and returning customers who benefit from efficient logistics. Small and large customers will be better served.
Faster adoption of new technologies and those proven effective overseas will bring safety improvements and productivity gains to North American railroads. Growth is contagious across industrial systems.
Relating proactively through education and support with economic developers and their associations will stimulate a surge in rail-enabled industrial development.
Connecting public-sector transportation and economic development plans with private-sector logistics strategies will optimize all transportation and infrastructure investments.
Proactive interactions among railroad staff, landowners, and developers will enable more projects to become “shovel-ready,” with rail already integrated into the development concept.
Partnering with realtors and site selectors in their advisory efforts will boost the use of rail transportation and expand the market opportunity for them and their clients.
Cultivating OTNA’s “Solution-Driven Research” approach will empower researchers to conceive pragmatic research that advances workable solutions.
Collaborating and integrating with other transport modes and services, e.g., trucking and transloading, will create new levels of efficiency and dependability and lower the impact of goods movement on communities.
A broader industrial development strategy with railroads' value at its center will lead to supportive policies and additional public-sector rail investment.
