Home Oil & Gas Transportation Fisheries Natural Resources State/ Regional Movers & Shakers Calendar Profile Feature Story Bulletin Board Cartoons Opinion Wealthbuilders Fish Factor Alaska Coastal Journal Construction Focus Oil & Gas Reporter Alaskan Equipment Trader Archives Classifieds About Us Legals Subscribe Advertise with us Contact Us
	-27° -20° -43° -18° -6° 12° -24° 14° 30° 16° 21° Choose City Anchorage Barrow Bethel Cordova Deadhorse Denali Park Dillingham Dutch Harbor Fairbanks Galena Haines Homer Juneau Kenai Ketchikan Kodiak Kotzebue McGrath Nenana Paxson Petersburg Pribilof Islands Sitka Skagway Soldotna Talkeetna Valdez Wrangell Yakutat
	Letter to the editor Comments Locate a copy

[an error occurred while processing this directive]

[an error occurred while processing this directive]

Web posted Monday, April 7, 2003 Alaska Railroad posts $9 million profit By Christina Sessions Alaska Journal of Commerce   An increased number of trains hauling gravel from the Palmer area helped boost the Alaska Railroad Corp.'s revenues in 2002. PHOTO/Courtesy Alaska Railroad Corp. Despite a 1.5 percent decline in revenue in 2002, cost-containment measures enabled the Alaska Railroad Corporation to report an $8.9 million profit for the year. That represents a 35 percent increase over 2001, according to the railroad's annual report released April 1. Total revenue for the year was $105.7 million. That was a $1.6 million drop from last year. Several factors contributed to the revenue losses last year, including a decline of freight revenues, according to the report. Freight accounts for 72 percent of the railroad's revenues. The cessation of the contract between South Korea and the Usebelli Coal Mine meant a significant loss of freight for the company. In addition, the volume of shipments of petroleum products from the North Pole Refinery was less than anticipated. While increased gravel shipments toward the end of the year helped counteract the losses, the railroad still saw an overall decline in revenues from 2001. [an error occurred while processing this directive] Despite the slip in revenue, officials were able to take cost-containment measures to ensure the company had a successful year. Expenses were reduced by 4 percent. The railroad put a hiring cap in place, and winter maintenance costs on the track south of Portage were reduced, since coal trains were not running. According to Pat Flynn, spokesman for the railroad, the single biggest cost-saving factor was the company's safety record. The railroad reduced the injury frequency rate by 63 percent over the past five years. The reduction of accidents meant less time lost, and reduced worker's compensation claims. The safety factor also helped earn the company the distinction of being one of the safest railroads in the country, according to the report. Officials at the railroad had anticipated that the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks would have a negative impact on passenger travel in 2002. On the contrary, passenger revenues increased more than four percent last year. In addition, real estate income for the railroad hit a record high in 2002, surpassing $11 million. Expenditures on capital assets totaled $66.5 million last year, 86 percent of which was funded by grants from the federal government, according to the annual report.