Lodging Enterprises, LLC Opens Oak Tree Inn and Penny’s Diner in Low Moor, VA to Serve
Needs of CSX Crews

WICHITA, Kan., June 22, 2009 – A brand new Oak Tree Inn and Penny’s Diner opened their doors in Low Moor, VA on June 16. The 30-room hotel and adjoining 50s style diner will primarily serve the needs of CSX Corporation train crews traveling into Clifton Forge. However, overflow rooms will be made available to the public and everyone is encouraged to enjoy the food and atmosphere at Penny’s Diner. The Oak Tree Inn and Penny’s Diner replaces the CSX dormitory and Bull Pen restaurant which have been operating in Clifton Forge since 1989.

CSX Corporation, based in Jacksonville, Fla., is one of the nation's leading transportation companies, providing rail-based transportation services.  Lodging Enterprises, LLC, a hotel operations and development company based in Wichita, Kan., operates 26 other Oak Tree Inns in 15 states and is the nation’s largest provider of custom lodging services to the U.S. rail industry. It contracts with the nation’s largest railroad companies to provide lodging and 24-hour food service to railroad workers.

The Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 includes new hours-of-service limits.  Among other safety improvements, the new legislation mandates more rest for workers, including a guaranteed minimum 10-hour disruption-free rest period for train crews and signal employees.

Oak Tree Inns are built to provide uninterrupted sleep conditions, designed specifically to address the needs of the railroad industry with its irregular work schedules. Railroads like CSX operate 24 hours a day with no uniform work shifts.  With crews at train switching stations requiring food and lodging and mandatory periods of rest at all hours, the hotels are built with features that provide a superior rest environment 24-hour a day.  Cheryl Hooke, Manager CSX Crew Lodging, said, “Lodging Enterprises builds facilities that provide CSX train crews with top-rated accommodations. The rooms are clean, quiet and dark. This allows crews an undisturbed rest period whether it is 3 a.m. or 3 p.m.” Room features include custom black-out drapes to block all light, custom insulated, sound-resistant windows to block sound, white background noise on the heating and air units to mask outside noise, special construction of plumbing systems to block plumbing noise, and a wireless remote guest detection system which allows housekeepers to determine whether a room is occupied without knocking or opening a door.

Union contracts require the provision of 24-hour food service.  Lodging Enterprises owns and operates 22 Penny’s Diners, offering 24-hour service of cooked-to-order meals in hotel locations where 24-hour food service is not available.