Word: railroad
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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Soon, however, violence broke out elsewhere. Black youths pelted passing trains with stones. Some tried to prevent the 230,000 blacks from Soweto who work in Johannesburg from going to their jobs. A key railroad switching station was sabotaged to prevent the approximately 100 daily commuter trains from leaving Soweto for the city. As a result, tens of thousands of blacks failed to show up at their jobs in Johannesburg. By week's end only a handful of people had been killed in the new disturbances, but mobs of adults as well as youths were still roaming through...
...have all set up giant, equipment-laden trailers under the town water tower that functions as an antenna. A couple of dozen reporters flock around Press Secretary Jody Powell and Campaign Manager Hamilton Jordan, recording their every word as they conduct a "briefing" alongside the railroad tracks in Plains-even though to date they have provided only the most fleeting glimpses of the inner workings of the post-primary campaign. Afterward, reporters grumble to each other about excessive secrecy and "news management," and file stories soured by bitterness...
...Reed, is that management is "dedicated to running a first-class railroad." To that end, the Santa Fe recently opened a $50 million switching yard in Barstow, Calif., that it claims is the most advanced in the nation; in only two moves, the "humpmaster" (who determines route priorities) can automatically switch freight cars to 16 holding stations. The railroad was also the first to install a locomotive simulator to train its engineers (who now include seven women), and it uses a computerized central information system to make the most efficient use of locomotives...
Good Track. The Santa Fe is also the only railroad to have run a freight train-the Super C-at 80 m.p.h. "To do that," says Reed, "you have to maintain your track pretty darn well." Unlike many other railroads, the Santa Fe spends money heavily on keeping its roadbed in good repair even in bad times. Says Operations Vice President Larry Cena: "You can't just be doing maintenance work when business is good. That's when you need the plant." During the Russian wheat sales boom in 1973, the Santa Fe picked up much extra business...
Reed is determined to maintain the improvement. One indication of his fierce pride in the railroad is a recent tiff with Amtrak, the Government-sponsored corporation that has taken over operation of most U.S. passenger trains. When it took over the Santa Fe's fabled Super Chief service from Chicago to Los Angeles, Amtrak kept the name but dropped the linen napkins and fresh-cut flowers that traditionally graced the dining car. John Reed, aghast at such a decline in standards, withdrew permission for Amtrak to continue calling the Super Chief by its proud old name...