Chicago South Shore & South Bend names new President

Todd Bjornstad, formerly the General Manager of the Rapid City, Pierre & Eastern Railroad (RCP&E), has been named President of the Chicago South Shore & South Bend Railroad Company (CSS), effective March 1, 2016. He will succeed Andrew C. Fox.

Fox will assume the role of CEO for a transitional period, after which he will join CSS parent company Anacostia Rail Holdings.

Bjornstad has 25 years of experience in the rail industry. He had been General Manager of the RCP&E, which consists of 700 miles of rail line in South Dakota and Minnesota, since its acquisition by Genesee & Wyoming (G&W) from Canadian Pacific in June 2014. His other roles within G&W included Vice President of Transportation for G&W’s Midwest region and Vice President of Customer Service for RailAmerica in Jacksonville, Fla. Prior to that, he had been with Union Pacific for 17 years.

He is a military veteran and served in the United States Air Force as a missile systems specialist responsible for testing, repair and maintenance of nuclear missile systems. He has an A.S. degree in electronics from the Community College of the Air Force and a B.S. degree in management from Excelsior College in Albany, New York.

“I’m very excited about the opportunity. Anacostia is a reputable company in the industry and I feel very fortunate to be given a leadership position at the Chicago South Shore. I look forward to working with everyone there,” said Bjornstad.

Fox has been the President of the CSS since 2010, when he joined the railroad after 13 years at another Anacostia Rail Holdings railroad, Pacific Harbor Line (PHL). He was essential in helping the PHL get launched and served as its President since its inception in 1997. He joined PHL following a 23-year career with Southern Pacific, where he held various posts in the operating, finance and executive departments. Fox has a B.S. degree in civil engineering and an MBA, both from Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill.

Peter Gilbertson, President of Anacostia Rail Holdings, said, “We are gratified that Todd Bjornstad will be taking a leadership role at CSS and Anacostia. His experience and entrepreneurial approach will add great value. We are pleased that Andrew Fox will continue to make senior-level contributions to Anacostia.”

CSS is one of six railroads operated by Anacostia Rail Holdings. It operates 127 route miles of line providing rail freight service between Chicago and South Bend, Ind. CSS connects with all Chicago railroads and serves the Port of Chicago. Anacostia’s other lines are the Gulf Coast Switching Company, Louisville & Indiana Railroad Company, New York & Atlantic Railway Company, Northern Lines Railway, and Pacific Harbor Line.