SNOW: CSX HAS NO MERGER PLANS

SNOW: CSX HAS NO MERGER PLANS PLANS
   John W. Snow, chairman, president and chief executive officer of CSX Corp., has told the Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Subcommittee of the U.S. Senate's Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee that CSX Transportation (CSXT), the rail division of CSX Corp., 'has no plan, intention or inclination' to begin merger talks with another railroad.
   CSXT also opposes any such overtures among its competitors. 'I see this as a prudent approach ' the right approach for these times,' Snow said.
   He commended a recent rulemaking decision by the Surface Transportation Board (STB) that 'sends the rail industry a clear signal. It tells me that future Class One rail mergers will be much harder to accomplish,' Snow said.
   'That result makes good sense now and for the foreseeable future, as railroads need to focus on securing the benefits of past mergers and not initiating new mergers,' he explained.
      'For now, and for perhaps even five years from now,' the STB's new rules 'are not only sound and appropriate, they are imperative,' Snow said.
   In his testimony before the Senate subcommittee, Snow cited the current spate of alliances and marketing initiatives among Class One railroads as a wiser alternative to mergers.
   The CSX Corp. chairman also praised the STB for implementing a 15-month moratorium on rail mergers in 2000.
   'Given 15 months of breathing room, I am pleased to tell you that CSX today is running better than ever. The critical operating metrics we use as performance indicators ' freight car dwell time in yards, velocity and cars on line ' are exceeding goals.'