UP to test 'expeditor' roles to improve conductors' quality of life

Union Pacific Railroad will launch a four-phase pilot project that calls for redeploying traditional conductors as ground-based "expeditors" to address certain service issues, the Class I announced this week.

The years-in-the-making pilot calls for applying technology to the conductor's role to improve safety and quality of life, Rod Doerr, UP vice president of crew management system and interline operations, wrote in a post on the company's website.

The project is being pursued in cooperation with the UP workforce though the collective bargaining process, Doerr said.

UP's goal is to replace the "unknowns" that conductors experience during a regular shift and schedule. If successful, the project will provide employees more control over quality-of-life issues, even sick leave, the post states.

"Today, the train conductor’s job primarily consists of preparing a train for departure and occasionally addressing minor mechanical issues that occur en route. It’s a job much better served by ground-based truck service, responding to planned or unplanned events, dispatched from centralized locations around the rail network," Doerr wrote.

UP envisions a role where the expeditor receives a service call from an en-route train, drives to that train and performs the service request, then drives back to the prescribed base.

"Our data suggest that in most cases, this will take less time than having an on-board conductor attempt the same tasks, leading to more consistent transit times and less delay at public crossings," Doerr wrote.

The pilot will be tested in a variety of locations, territories and grades, with a broad traffic mix, as well as different service requirements and ease of access. In each tested subdivision, UP will determine if the ground-based expeditor can perform traditional conductor role tasks more safely and efficiently.

During the pilot, the conductor will stay on the train to perform his or her role; document dates and times of service activities and the time it takes to complete them. The expeditor will do the same from the ground. At the end of the pilot, UP will compare the results and adjust the plan as necessary, Doerr said.