CSX in Corbin cuts over 200 jobs.

Free_Salato_Blue

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Aug 31, 2014
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3.2.1... OBAMA

Sorry for them, hard to keep a job in the rail industry with private contractors doing it cheaper.
 

DUNNSTILLFREENALIVE

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Jul 19, 2009
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The luxury of being able to able to afford living in eastern Ky just got harder to come by. Not just anybody can do it, jobs are slim and only the strong thrive and are able to survive.
 

VT/UK Rondo

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Ive made alot of money on railroads
 
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HossCat73_rivals

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I'm a retired CSX locomotive engineer. The coal industry has been dying a slow death for over 30 years now.at one time we were bringing 14 or 15 coal trains a day out of russell yard. when i retired (8 years ago) we were getting maybe 2 or 3 a WEEK

This is correct. My father retired from CSX after 40 years as an engineer, all on the East KY Subdivision of the Corbin Division. Nothing out of the ordinary for the Ravenna caller to run that many trains out of there too just like Russell. His pool job ran him from Ravenna to Hazard and back, and him being called back out just after his rest was up, was normal. Haven't had the chance to talk with him about this, but he still keeps up with a lot of those guys from his railroad days. You want to talk depressing, the Ravenna and Hazard Yards are it..used to be FULL of loaded and empty coal trains, bix six-axle EMD's on the engine ready tracks, caboose track, (mine runs still used cabooses up until the early 90's)..both ghost towns now.
 
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Altro Cat

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I'm a retired CSX locomotive engineer. The coal industry has been dying a slow death for over 30 years now.at one time we were bringing 14 or 15 coal trains a day out of russell yard. when i retired (8 years ago) we were getting maybe 2 or 3 a WEEK


Not sure where Russell Yard is but growing up within hearing distance of train tracks it used to be a coal train every couple hours. Now maybe average one a day.
 

Chuckinden

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I have some friends who work for CSX and they have seen this coming for quite awhile. I have to credit CSX for holding off as long as they could hoping something would change, but it's not as bad as it's gonna get.

The coal business has been up and down for so many years and now most coal and oil fired factories and utilities have finally made the switch to natural gas. I can't see where coal has a future left in this country.
 
Jan 28, 2007
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I have sympathy for the people who lost their jobs, as well as for their families and communities. However, there are better energy sources available right now for power and coal is paying the price.

 

Bill Derington

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Jan 21, 2003
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I have sympathy for the people who lost their jobs, as well as for their families and communities. However, there are better energy sources available right now for power and coal is paying the price.


Natural Gas is what's decreasing coal use.

It's almost as cheap as coal in a combined cycle plant, with about 15% the workers needed. Gas powered plants can be shut off and restarted daily, and reliably. Coal plants can't.
As long as natural gas is cheap it'll continue this way.
I believe Coal will rebound though, Natural Gas costs will go back up. With the reserves of coal the US has , companies will find a way to use it.
 
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