Norfolk, Va. - Oct 20, 2015

Norfolk Southern announces service changes in response to upcoming Positive Train Control deadline

Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) today said its rail operating subsidiaries will no longer accept shipments of Poisonous-Inhalation-Hazard commodities, effective Dec. 1, 2015. PIH commodities in transit on Dec. 1 will be delivered to destination by Dec. 31. Additionally, passenger and commuter trains operated by Amtrak, Virginia Railway Express, and Metra will be prohibited by law from operating on NS after Dec. 31.

The cessation of service – effective across the entire NS rail network – is required to comply with federal safety laws that become effective after Dec. 31, the government’s deadline for installation of PTC. Despite investment of nearly $1 billion to date, NS will not meet the deadline.

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By Keith Laing - 10/21/15 09:33 AM EDT

Lawmakers in the House and Senate have reached an agreement to extend for three years a federal deadline for a new automated train system, possibly avoiding a partial railway shutdown.

The agreement calls for moving a Dec. 31 deadline for railroads to install an automated train navigation system known as Positive Train Control (PTC) to the end of 2018 at the earliest. The system, which regulates the speed and track movements of trains, has been touted as a game changer for train safety, but railroads have complained it is difficult to implement.

Under the new agreement, railroads would have an extra three years to work on the automated train conversion. They will also have the option of requesting an extra two years to work on the installation if they submit plans for doing the work by Dec. 31, 2018. The requests would have to be approved by the Department of Transportation on a case-by-case basis.

Critics have complained the agreement will result in a "blanket five-year" extension for railroads to install technology that has been touted as a life-saver that can prevent deadly train accidents.