ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern has named Paul Duncan as vice president, network planning and operations. Duncan will succeed John Friedmann, who previously announced his retirement after 27 years at NS.
Duncan is currently vice president of service design and performance at BNSF Railway. He joined BNSF in 2002.
In an email announcing the hire, Chief Operating Officer Cindy Sanborn writes that Duncan will lead Network Planning and Operations, which combines the Network Planning and Optimization department and Network Operations Center. “Consolidating these two departments into a single organization will improve alignment between the team responsible for developing an effective operating plan and the team that helps execute the plan through locomotive distribution, crew management, and dispatch,” Sandborn writes. The change is effective immedidately.
Sanborn writes that Duncan has more than 19 years’ experience in operations and transportation at BNSF, and currently oversees development of service plans for bulk, intermodal and merchandise traffic. “Paul’s experience in creating strategies that yield dividends in service, productivity, and growth will be critical to us as we formulate and implement TOP-SPG, our new operating plan,” Sanborn writes. Prior to his current role, Duncan was assistant vice president for capacity planning, in which he oversaw capital planning for infrastructure.
Duncan will join NS in March.
NS needs a major infusion of well-experienced operating execs. Their operations here in the northeast are a disaster, with total focus on fuel-saving (good old PSR!), at the expense of getting the trains over the road expeditiously. No one seems to give a damn about the costs of multiple re-crews, delayed train arrivals and therefore crew and power shortages. Bring back Tony Ingram!
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