Jo Strang Celebrates 10 Years With ASLRRA

Jo Strang kayaking in Seal Cove, Maine (left); Jo Strang presenting on behalf of OLI (right).

Jo Strang, SVP Safety, Regulatory and Environmental Policy has served the ASLRRA for 10 years.

Jo represents the Association on a variety of national transportation industry committees, and advocates for members in regulatory matters.  Jo advises and represents the Association’s members nationally in regulatory matters, including on the Federal Railroad Administration’s Railroad Safety Advisory Committee. She currently serves as Chair of the Board of Directors of Operation Lifesaver International, Chair of the Transportation Research Board’s AR70 Committee (Railroad Safety), on the advisory committee for the railway engineering programs at University of Delaware and Penn State Altoona, and as the staff liaison for ASLRRA’s Safety & Training and Environmental Committees.

“She has brought enhanced professionalism and credibility to the regulatory team at ASLRRA and has an acute knowledge of the government rulemaking processes. In addition, Jo has been a great mentor and boss – she is one of the most caring individuals I have ever known,” said JR Gelnar, Vice President Safety & Compliance, ASLRRA.

We had the opportunity to sit down with Jo this week to talk about her ASLRRA experiences.

Q: How did you get your start in the railroad industry?

My career in transportation began with the U.S. Army, where I spent five years prior to joining the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA).  I’ve done several stints at the FRA – including doing enforcement work in the field as the Deputy Regional Administrator in Chicago.  I then took a position with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) running the railroad accident division.  I returned to the FRA to run Financial Assistance and Research & Development Office of the Deputy Associate Administrator, which led me to be asked to temporarily run the Office of Safety (the first female to do so). I ended up being the longest serving AA for Safety in the history of the agency.

I was honored to receive many awards including the first DOT Technology Transfer Award for my work in crash energy management and the Presidential Rank Award for running all of FRA during the transition to the Obama Administration.  I also started the safety data initiative, opening safety data for use by developers and analysts on a project with the White House, where it was my privilege to work with the Chief Technology Officer of the United States. In many of these roles, I was the first female to be selected for those responsibilities. It is good to see so many more women in railroading today. As an aside, I met President Obama’s dog, Bo, and got to eat at the White House mess in the process!  

Q: What has been the initiative that you’ve been most proud of over the past ten years?

Starting the Short Line Safety Institute! As an industry, we knew we needed to focus on safety culture and did benchmarking with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, NASA and DuPont with a lot of feedback and guidance from ASLRRA’s Safety and Training Committee.  We began a pilot program with help from the FRA’s Office of Research & Development and relied on their expertise to develop the protocols for evaluating Safety Culture on short line railroads. Seeing the SLSI take off and flourish is very gratifying.

Advocating for, and beginning an ASLRRA Committee focused on environmental issues was another moment of pride, along with the Association joining Smartway as an Affiliate Member.  The Environmental Committee is now one of our most active Committees, leading the way in environmental issues and emissions reductions.

Q: What do you enjoy most about your work at ASLRRA?

I love short lines and short line railroaders. They have an amazing “can do” attitude and can nimbly respond to any request I have. I enjoy helping them on matters of regulation, enforcement fairness, and safety and environmental practices.

Q: As you look to the rest of the year and beyond, what are you excited about for railroading/member engagement?

Continuing to advocate for our members with the Federal government in safety and environmental policy. Seeing the results of our research projects and hoping to influence public policy to protect the American public.

Q: What would our members be surprised to know about you?

I am an avid sea kayaker and try to get out on the ocean every day I can. In addition to my volunteer roles related to railroading, I assist in fundraising for the most awesome camp on Mount Desert Island, Maine — Camp Beech Cliff.

Comment from Railway Age Capitol Hill Contributing Editor Frank N. Wilner: “President Ronald Reagan’s famous quip, ‘Trust, but verify,’ actually was borrowed from the line‘s originator, Jo Strang!”