The morning after Norfolk Southern Corp. said its first-quarter profit fell 39 percent, company executives said the railroad hasn’t faced an economic slowdown like this in any of their memories.

The plunge in freight volume is about double the drop seen at the peak of the 1981-82 recession.

The drop in railway volume ranged from 48 percent for the company’s automotive unit to 11 percent for coal operations.

In response, the company is cutting whatever costs it can without degrading its service to customers or affecting its ability to react quickly when the economy improves.

[Read](http://hamptonroads.com/2009/04/norfolk-southern-makes-moves-work-tougher-times “Read the Article”) (The Virginian-Pilot)