G&AR Rebrands as Pinsly Railroad Company

Written by Carolina Worrell, Senior Editor

Gulf & Atlantic Railways, LLC (G&AR) announced May 1 that it is rebranding as Pinsly Railroad Company following the October 2023 acquisition of Pioneer Valley Railroad, Pinsly’s last short line railroad company.

Pinsly Railroad Company is the second oldest short line railway holding company in North America, and, according to CEO, Ryan Ratledge, “it is under this iconic name that we are excited to run and grow our portfolio of railroad, warehousing, transloading, and trucking businesses. Our team is committed to continuing the admirable Pinsly track record for safety and service.”

Ratledge further commented that the renaming of the company “will not change operations at any of the railroads.” The company, he says, “remains committed to expanding its reach, investing in both its workforce and infrastructure to generate economic value and employment opportunities within the communities it serves.”

The renamed Pinsly Railroad Company, which will continue to be headquartered on the St. Johns River near downtown Jacksonville at 245 Riverside Ave., Suite 250, operates six short line regional railroads: Pioneer Valley Railroad (PVRR) in Massachusetts, Grenada Railroad (GRYR) in Central Mississippi, Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad (FGA) in the panhandle of Florida, and in the Midwest, the Chesapeake and Indiana Railroad (CKIN), Vermilion Valley Railroad (VVRR), and Camp Chase Railway (CAMY). The company also operates Railroad Distribution Services (RDS), which provides warehousing, storage, and trucking for non-rail served accounts via transload.

“Pinsly Railroad Company is one of the oldest and most admired names in the short line industry,” the company said. Its origins trace back to 1938, when Samuel M. Pinsly undertook the task of purchasing and rehabilitating the hurricane damaged Hoosac Tunnel and Wilmington Railroad in Massachusetts and Vermont. Over the subsequent decades, Pinsly “blazed a trail in the industry during an era of heavy government regulation, by acquiring abandoned rail lines from struggling Class I railroads,” the company added.

With the deregulation of the rail industry ushered in by the Staggers Rail Act of 1980, the Class I railroads’ shedding of route miles began to create opportunities for short lines. The company seized upon this new landscape, notably acquiring the Pioneer Valley Railroad Company in 1982, a railroad that continues to operate under the Pinsly brand.

Under the leadership of Marjorie “Maggie” Pinsly Silver and John P. Levine, the company embarked on a six-decade journey of strategic acquisitions and divestitures, “solidifying its position as a respected entity within the short line industry.” Today, Pinsly Railroad Company says it “proudly carries forward the legacy of its entrepreneurial founders, dedicated to serving communities’ transportation needs with a focus on safety, service, and community engagement.”

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