Rail Group On Air

CN President and CEO JJ Ruest, in his second Rail Group on Air appearance, describes his vision for CN’s future as the industry pushes forward following a challenging second quarter Ruest, Railway Age’s 2019 Railroader of the Year, discusses the best opportunities for business growth, and the railroad’s commitment to its 2020 C$2.9 billion capital plan, with Editor-in-Chief William C. Vantuono. Podcast sponsored by TrinityRail.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), in consultation with the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), issued on June 19 a final rule authorizing the bulk transportation of liquefied natural gas (LNG) by rail. Specifically, the rule will permit the bulk transportation of LNG in DOT-113C120W9 specification tank cars with enhanced outer tank requirements and additional operational controls. Scott Nason, Application Development Manager – Rail & ISO Markets at Chart Inc., discusses the market potential and safety aspects of LNG by rail with Railroad Financial Corp. President and Railway Age Financial Editor David Nahass and Editor-in-Chief William C. Vantuono.

Renowned railway industrial designer Cesar Vergara, Principal of Vergarastudio, talks with Railway Age Editor-in-Chief William C. Vantuono about the numerous challenges facing passenger rail agencies and railcar engineers and designers created by the COVID-19 pandemic and requirements for social distancing and cleaning/disinfecting of equipment.

This installment in Railway Age’s Rail Group On Air Podcast series with the Commuter Rail Coalition features New Jersey Transit President and CEO Kevin Corbett, who discusses NJT’s approach to ridership recovery and safety during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the agency’s long-term capital plans and strategy.

RT&S Editor-in-Chief talks to Wayne Presby of the Mount Washington Railway Company about a re-railing project full of innovation.

This Rail Group On Air Podcast is part of our series featuring members of the Commuter Rail Coalition. This edition features executives from the Metra (Chicago) leadership team: Executive Director and CEO and CRC Chairman Jim Derwinski, Chief Operating Officer Bruce Marcheschi, Division Director Chicago Union Station Rich Oppenheim, and Director of Dispatching Greg Godfrey. They talk about the challenges of operating the Metra commuter rail system in the complex Chicago Terminal area, the nation’s railroad crossroads.

This Rail Group On Air podcast, the second of three and based on a feature story published on line and in the July print and digital issues of Railway Age, introduces Precision Scheduled Railroading 2.0 as envisioned by Sonia Bot and John F. Orr. PSR 2.0 takes Precision Scheduled Railroading to the next level, within individual railroads and across railroad and transportation “ecosystems.” It demands an entrepreneurial culture focused on business rigor, forging productive partnerships, safeguarding origin-to-destination traffic flow and increasing knowledge. Sonia D. Bot, chief executive of The BOT Consulting Group Inc., has worked at the forefront of technology, media, and telecommunications companies worldwide, and was instrumental in PTC implementation on CN’s U.S. lines. John F. Orr, a top-level operations executive for railroading and transportation ecosystems, is a fourth-generation railroader who rose through the ranks and became CN’s Chief Transportation Officer. With E. Hunter Harrison and his successors, Orr delivered PSR operations, and continues the mission today throughout North America, Europe and Asia.

The Coalition Against Bigger Trucks (CABT) works diligently to prevent the size and weight limits for tractor-trailer trucks to be increased from current federal limits. Public safety is at stake. Railway Age Editor-in-Chief William C. Vantuono talks with Sheriff Donald B. Smith, who served as the 53rd Sheriff of Putnam County, New York, for 16 years, and Sgt. Andrew Matthews, a retired Connecticut State Police trooper and current executive director of the National Troopers Coalition. Both are part of the leadership of CABT, for which they serve as members of the law enforcement advisory board.

Bentley Systems Director, Product Management – Building, Electrical, Plant and Structure Eduardo Lazzarotto discusses Building Information Modeling and Digital Twins technologies, especially how they can be applied to rail transit station design to support social distancing made necessary by COVID-19, with Railway Age Editor-in-Chief William C. Vantuono.

Railway Age Editor-in-Chief William C. Vantuono talks with the leadership team at BNSF Railway: Carl Ice, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Railway Age’s 2016 Railroader of the Year; Executive Vice President Operations Katie Farmer; and Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Steve Bobb. Sponsored by TrinityRail.