Former President, Chief Executive Officer & Director, Norfolk Southern Railway
Search every verified Alan Shaw interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw has continued to defend the company’s safety record and strategy amid ongoing scrutiny following the February 2023 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. One year after the derailment, Shaw stated that Norfolk Southern “was a safe railroad” and that he promised to make it “even safer.” He said the company has invested more than $100 million in East Palestine and that it has kept every promise made to the community. Shaw also said he has visited the town 20 to 30 times since the derailment. During a Senate hearing, Shaw apologized for the derailment and said the company is “determined to make this right,” but he declined to commit to specific demands from lawmakers, such as paying for long-term medical testing or compensating homeowners for diminished property values, instead saying he is “committed to doing what’s right.” Shaw has also been engaged in a proxy fight with activist investor Ancora, which sought to replace him as CEO. Shaw said the company “vigorously disagree[s]” with Ancora’s recommendations and argued that Ancora’s plan lacks credibility. He stated that Norfolk Southern has offered board seats to the activists but called their responses “unreasonable.” Shaw emphasized that the company is focused on a strategy balancing safety, service, productivity, and growth, and that it has the support of 11 of its 13 unions. He also said the company is targeting a 400 to 500 basis point improvement in its operating ratio in the second half of the year and a sub-60% operating ratio within three to four years.
“We're doing exactly what we said we would do, Morgan. We laid out aggressive targets for the year.”
“Despite a weak freight environment, we've overcome that with accelerating our productivity initiatives.”
“That gives us a lot of confidence to reaffirm our margin guidance for the second half of the year, which is effectively a 400 to 500 basis points improvement year over year.”
“We're improving service. We're reducing costs. We're growing revenue. We're enhancing safety.”
“Intermodal grew 8%, automotive grew 7%. We have a lot of confidence going forward.”
“There is ongoing litigation, but we've certainly reduced the majority of the outstanding liabilities with the settlement. And there will be third-party recoveries as well.”
“Pricing in the merchandise network remains really strong. We're offering a very good product, and we're creating value for our customers and we're securing that through price.”
“Pricing and domestic intermodal is weak. We're starting to see an inflection in truck spot rates — that's encouraging for us as we move forward.”
“The coal market really is defined by the underlying commodity price in coal.”
“We participate in a broad cross-section of the U.S. economy; the consumer's still purchasing durable goods but not at the rate it had in the past — commodity prices are weak, whether that's in energy, grain or metals, so that's putting some pressure on us.”
“We're doing exactly what we said we would do, Morgan. We laid out aggressive targets for the year, and despite a weak freight environment we've overcome that with accelerating our productivity initiatives.”
“Service — that's the essence of our strategy. We're improving service, we're reducing costs, we're growing revenue, we're enhancing safety.”
“That gives us a lot of confidence to reaffirm our margin guidance for the second half of the year, which is effectively a 400 to 500 basis points improvement year over year.”
“There is ongoing litigation, but we've certainly reduced the majority of the outstanding liabilities with the settlement. And there will be third‑party recoveries as well.”
“Pricing in the merchandise network remains really strong — we're offering a very good product and we're securing that through price. Pricing and domestic intermodal is weak, but we're starting to see an inflection in truck spot rates, which is encouraging for us.”
Alan Shaw, Norfolk Southern CEO, joins 'Squawk on the Street' to discuss earnings, the aftermath of the East Palestine cleanup, ...
Following our Annual Meeting of Shareholders last week, CEO Alan Shaw shared his thoughts with our team on the path forward for Norfolk Southern. As Alan said, “It was a good day for Norfolk Southern. What our shareholders did and how they voted indicated their confidence in our strategy, our approach, and our management team. They were also really clear. They want us to deliver results ... We’re completely aligned. We’ve got to deliver on that groundbreaking strategy of a balance between service, productivity, and growth – with safety at its core.” Team NS is ready to honor our commitme…
Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw joins 'Closing Bell Overtime' to discuss the ongoing fight with Ancora and respond to proxy advisor firm Glass Lewis siding with the activists ahead of the May 9th vote. Plus, Shaw updates on the progress the railroad is making on its operations to its operating ratio.
Alan Shaw, Norfolk Southern CEO, joins 'Closing Bell Overtime' to talk proxy battle heating up, union outreach, profitability and ...
'Mad Money' host Jim Cramer sits down with Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw to discuss the ongoing proxy battle led by Ancora ...
One year after a toxic train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio residents are still worried while Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw says his railroad is safe. The train which derailed, NS 32N, was in Decatur, Illinois the evening before the wreck. February 2024. Thanks for Watching WAND TV Doug Wolfe. Please click on subscribe for the latest local (Illinois) and national news. News, politics, features and interviews. Stories and videos are added frequently. General news of interest from award winning WAND TV - NBC reporter Doug Wolfe. Hard news, features and investigative reports along with…
One year after a train carrying toxic chemicals derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw said the company remains committed to the community. NBC News’ George Solis had an exclusive interview with Shaw in East Palestine and spoke with residents about their concerns. » Subscribe to NBC News: / nbcnews NBC News Digital is a collection of innovative and powerful news brands that deliver compelling, diverse and engaging news stories. NBC News Digital features NBCNews.com, MSNBC.com, TODAY.com, Nightly News, Meet the Press, Dateline, and the existing apps and digital…
Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw reflects on 1 year anniversary of East Palestine, Ohio train derailment Stay informed about ...
As Yahoo Finance Invest continues, Executive Editor Brian Sozzi spoke with Alan Shaw, President and CEO of Norfolk Southern (NSC), about the East Palestine rail derailment, railroad safety, the current downturn in the rail industry. Shaw attributed the decline to broader economic factors like the freight recession in the trucking market, which has suppressed spot market rates and inventory restocking. Despite these headwinds, Shaw expressed confidence that the rail industry is entering a "manufacturing supercycle." "We've got the most powerful automotive franchise in the east, and so it's only…
As an operations-driven, customer-centric service organization, trust and collaboration are foundational to achieving Norfolk ...
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