Commentary

ASLRRA President Chuck Baker Marks Five Years at the Association’s Helm

Chuck Baker assumed the role of president at ASLRRA five years ago this winter. This week, the Association asks Baker to reflect on the past half-decade and where he sees the industry going.

Railway Age named Napoleon, Defiance & Western (left) 2023 Short Line of the Year; and ArcelorMittal Infrastructure Canada Railway (right) 2023 Regional of the Year.

Final Day to Enter Small-Road of the Year Nominations!

Railway Age is inviting all Class II and III railroads to submit entries for its annual Short Line and Regional Railroad of the Year competition. The deadline is close-of-business today: Feb. 6, 2024.

Major General Gavin Lawrence (pictured) will join CPKC President and CEO Keith Creel and the STB's Marty Oberman and Patrick Fuchs as featured speakers at ASLRRA's 2024 Annual Conference.

Lawrence Featured at ASLRRA Annual Conference

Major General Gavin Lawrence will be a featured speaker at the American Short Line and Railroad Association’s (ASLRRA) 2024 Annual Conference, scheduled to take place March 24-26 in Kansas City, Mo.

From Left to Right: Fran K. O'Connor, incoming NJDOT Commissioner; Kenneth Mobley, Group Director, HNTB; and Jim Bowers, winner of the ASLRRA 2024 Schlosser Distinguished Award.

People News: NJDOT, HNTB, ASLRRA

Francis (Fran) K. O’Connor has been nominated to serve as Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT). Also, Kenneth Mobley joins HNTB as Group Director; and the American Short Line and Railroad Association (ASLRRA) selects James A. “Jim” Bowers as its 2024 Schlosser Distinguished Award winner.

Each of the Short Line Hall of Fame honorees—Robert Grossman (left), the late Jake Jacobson (center) and Rick Webb—“has made an indelible mark on the short line industry, from creating the industry role of advocate in government and regulatory affairs, to launching an industry-wide emphasis and recognition of safe operating performance, to growing a car repair shop with a single railroad into a multi-service entity operating in four countries by building a team focused on exceptional customer service,” ASLRRA reported.

ASLRRA Names Short Line Hall of Famers for 2024

The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) on Jan. 9 announced that Robert Grossman, Lowell “Jake” Jacobson and Rick Webb have been selected to join the Short Line Railroad Hall

In a Dec. 6 letter to the House Committee on Homeland Security’s Chair Mark Green (R-Tenn.; right) and senior Democrat Bennie Thompson of Mississippi (left), 150 industry groups expressed their support of a bill that would streamline the background check process for government and supply chain workers.

Industry Groups Urge Passage of Transportation Security Screening Modernization Act

Calling for swift passage of the Transportation Security Screening Modernization Act, H.R. 5840 are more than 150 organizations, including the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA), Association of American Railroads,

ASLRRA President Chuck Baker
Commentary

Short Lines Are Dependable and Get the Job Done

ASLRRA PERSPECTIVE, RAILWAY AGE DECEMBER 2023 ISSUE: The story of “The Little Engine That Could” began as an American folktale popularized by various authors in the 1900s. An early published version of the tale appeared in 1906 under the title “Thinking One Can” in Wellspring for Young People, a national Sunday School Publication. A subsequent version was published in 1910 in the Kindergarten Review under the title “The Pony Engine.” In 1930, the story became widely known under the title “The Little Engine That Could” after a Chicago publishing house released it as an illustrated children’s book that was used in schools to teach children the value of optimism and hard work.

VW Mitigation Trust Funding Available to Short Lines in Calif.

The Volkswagen (VW) Environmental Mitigation Trust for California has approximately $55 million in funding available to support “statewide combustion freight and marine projects that replace or repower equipment to the cleanest commercially available internal combustion, hybrid or zero emission technologies,” the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) reported in its Nov. 30 Views & News newsletter.

ASLRRA’s Fred Oelsner, Cameron Downs and Richard Sherman recently joined Wi-Tronix’s Chad Jasmin for a field tour of Amtrak’s Ivy City Maintenance Facility in Washington, D.C. (ASLRRA Photograph)

Supply Side: ENSCO, RailPros, Wi-Tronix

The U.S. Department of Labor recognizes railway track inspection and measurement technology provider ENSCO for excellence in recruiting, employing and retaining America’s veterans. Also, engineering and diversified safety services company RailPros opens a Chicago office; and American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) staffers visit Amtrak’s Ivy City Maintenance Facility in Washington, D.C., to learn about Wi-Tronix’s onboard locomotive system implementation.

EPA Eyes Air Emissions Reporting Requirement Revisions (UPDATED 11/27)

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing changes to its Air Emissions Reporting Requirements, which would involve state, local and certain tribal air agencies providing emissions data using different approaches and owners/operators of some facilities reporting additional emissions data. Update: The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) has submitted comments in response to the proposal.

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