In this section, we showcase short line industry stories published in local media.
Railroad members! If you want to be featured in this section, please email us the link. You can also tag us (@ASLRRA) in your social media posts. Interested in seeing your railroad showcased in your local newspaper? Contact Amy Krouse for assistance.
Retired former board member Doug Golden has donated $48,000 since 2020 to fund scholarships for employees of small railroads. His support has provided funding to help 29 individuals to attend important industry training events.
Douglas Golden has decades of experience in the railroad industry, working first for Amtrak and later as a consultant with railroads of all sizes, port authorities, national governments, state agencies and more before managing small railroads and acquiring his own short lines. So, in 2020, when Golden was deciding how he wanted to give back to the community after choosing to retire and sell the Carolina Coastal Railway, the answer was clear. He was going to invest in railroaders.
But for Golden, the investment had to be in those who worked for short lines. He wanted to establish a program to help employees of small railroads attend the kind of critically important training that these small businesses with tight budgets might struggle to afford.
Unlike many short line owners, Golden did not get his start in the industry after a lifelong fascination with trains or as a second- or third-generation railroader. Instead, the history and economics major initially planned to become a teacher until a friend invited him to check out a job at Amtrak. It was a “right place, right time” moment for Golden, who rose quickly in his new organization before moving to another position with a railroad consulting firm.
Golden’s career continued to follow this natural progression. He and his business partners decided to establish their own consulting firm, and Golden later saw an opportunity to manage short lines, starting with a two-mile line in Pennsylvania. In 2003, when Golden heard about a 17-mile branch line in North Carolina on the verge of being shut down – the Carolina Coastal Railway – he acquired it.
His work with railroads led Golden to become involved with ASLRRA. He helped plan a regional and annual meeting when he lived and worked in Pennsylvania and was involved with ASLRRA’s board while in the Eastern region. Golden later officially joined the Board of Directors as a Southern region representative and also served on the Small Railroad Committee.
“It was a natural follow on to become involved with ASLRRA,” said Golden. “I think if you’re in the industry you need to be involved in the associations.”
These connections with ASLRRA, his experiences in the rail industry and the knowledge gained from running a short line railroad led Golden to use funds from his sale of Carolina Coastal Railway to establish the Doug Golden – Mary Cullen Charitable Fund, named for him and his wife. While they supported other important organizations, including a no-kill cat shelter, a bird sanctuary and a small college’s concert series, Golden and his wife also knew they wanted to establish an ongoing program to support small-railroad employees.
“I could see just based on the work that I did that training for small railroads was an issue,” said Golden. “Either you couldn’t afford it or in many cases you couldn’t afford to lose someone for a week. My interest was to make sure that going forward there’d be some program in place [to support training].”
Since he first connected with ASLRRA in December 2020 to set up the Doug Golden Scholarship Program, Golden has donated $48,000 through the Doug Golden – Mary Cullen Charitable Fund. To date, that funding has paid for 29 scholarships worth $1,200 each to help small-railroad employees attend industry-specific training meant to improve railroad safety and compliance practices and enhance overall operations. The 29 scholarships have gone to individuals from railroads based in 18 states representing every ASLRRA region.
The positive effect of these scholarships is evident in the post-training interviews with scholarship recipients conducted by ASLRRA. Nearly all interviewees have said their organizations prioritize training and want their employees to attend such events, and being awarded a scholarship played a significant role in making these opportunities more easily accessible to their railroads.
Recipients appreciated how scholarships freed up funding for additional training or other railroad needs and many said the knowledge they gained at training and brought back to the workplace was invaluable. The financial assistance, education and information sharing made possible by Doug Golden Scholarships, along with other reported perks like industry networking, are signs that Golden’s vision is coming to fruition.
Golden hopes to continue building the scholarship program by providing future financial support and believes there are many chances for other individuals to make similar contributions.
“There’s lots of opportunity to help the smaller railroads,” said Golden. “You can see the impact of your efforts a lot easier in the short line industry.”
While other people might prefer different ways to support short lines, for Golden, the answer lies in making sure individuals can access critical educational opportunities.
“I think training is always something that’s needed,” he said. “It’s something that will be needed years into the future.”
The Doug Golden Scholarship Program aids today’s workers, but by supporting education and training, Golden’s investment will have a positive ripple effect on short line railroad industry knowledge and safety for years to come. It is a lasting legacy for a lifelong railroader.
ASLRRA has joined a broad coalition of organizations in submitting comments urging the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to dismiss a petition for rulemaking from NextNav to reorganize the 902-928 MHz band (lower 900 MHz band) and establish a 5G terrestrial-based Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) network.
In addition to these comments, ASLRRA previously signed a letter to FCC Secretary Marlene Dortch also expressing opposition to NextNav’s petition. Many industry stakeholders currently utilize frequencies in the Lower 900 MHz band, including for railroad operations and safety, building and home security, municipal infrastructure, supply chain operations, agriculture and more.
The comments point to widespread concern about and little support for NextNav’s petition and say that approval of it could cause significant harm to the many industries relying on the Lower 900 MHz band. Furthermore, the comments argue NextNav has offered insufficient detail to address the potential harms.
In a new safety bulletin, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) reminds railroads and railroad employees to review location-specific safety issues and relevant operating rules, particularly when fouling tracks or going between equipment.
The FRA issued Safety Bulletin 2024-06 in response to an accident involving a conductor with two months of qualified service who was seriously injured after being pinned between two railcars during switching operations. The conductor was attempting to adjust the knuckle on a cut of cars when another cut of cars that had failed to couple rolled back and pinned him.
The FRA urges railroads to ensure that training programs make employees and trainees aware of the dangers associated with switching and that these employees are consistently monitored for safety compliance. The agency also identifies two prior documents it recommends railroads review, including Safety Advisory 2013-03, “Kicking Cars and Going Between Rolling Equipment During Flat Switching Operations,” and Recommendation #1 in a report from the FRA’s Switching Operations Fatality Analysis (SOFA) Working Group.
ASLRRA has added the new safety bulletin to its own safety notification resource page. This page includes links to FRA safety alerts and bulletins, and information from the Fatality Analysis of Maintenance-of-way Employees and Signalmen (FAMES) Committee, SOFA Working Group and Confidential Close Call Reporting System (C3RS).
Six reports from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) cover a variety of rail-related research topics. Click each link below to view the full report.
LiDAR Grade Crossing Data Collection and Storage Services for High Profile Grade Crossings
The FRA has worked to improve identification of high-profile grade crossings across the U.S. railway network, which is discussed in this report. After analyzing crossings using LiDAR 3D scanner arrays attached to rail survey vehicles, the FRA determined that several types of crossings did not reliably record accurate measurements. A research team from ENSCO, Inc. updated data processing algorithms used to analyze the collected data and extract accurate measurements.
In this study, Decisiontek, LLC worked to enhance the Generalized Train Movement Simulator (GTMS) and include a Communications Failure Impacts Model to understand the operational impact of communications outages on railroads with positive train control (PTC). When these outages occur, railroads experience delays because trains must move at slower speeds in non-PTC fallback mode. In addition to studying the impact of outages, the research team determined that the GTMS software was effective for measuring and evaluating possible mitigation techniques for these communication failure impacts.
Railroad Spike Failure Mitigation: Investigation of Tie Plate Hold-Down Elements
This report shares results of an ongoing study into ways to mitigate railroad spike failure. The Rail Transportation and Engineering Center (RailTEC) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) determined that friction between tie plates and ties significantly reduces the spike load, and installing screw spikes with spring washers helps maintain that friction. This report presents recommendations for the design of screw spike spring washers and discusses the types of springs that provide resiliency without overstressing the wood tie.
Efficacy of Increased Flash Rate of Railroad Gate Flashers
This study, conducted by the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, looked at whether increasing the flash rate of gate-mounted flashers on grade crossing warning devices would improve driver compliance at grade crossings. Results indicate that an increased flash rate did provide a positive safety benefit by improving driver compliance and reducing the violation rate and average time of violation.
In this study, a research team from Duke University evaluated the impact of technology use and automation on the workload of dispatcher personnel. The team developed a tool known as the Simulator of Humans and Automation in Dispatch Operations (SHADO), which can help test operations that use automated and autonomous systems. The study looked at three shift schedules in short-line freight rail and commuter scenarios.
Railroad Artificial Intelligence Intruder Learning System (RAIILS)
This report discusses Phase 2 of research into the Railroad Artificial Intelligence Intruder Learning System (RAIILS). Phase 2 involved developing new knowledge, insights and implementation tools to help improve trespass detection systems using predictive analysis. A team of researchers from Michigan Technological University developed a robot-mounted system for automated trespasser detection that reported incidents in real time. By detecting trespassing events in real time and using existing communications infrastructure to assist in incident response, research suggests this is a cost-effective tool that has the potential to save lives.
On Sept. 19, 23 members of ASLRRA’s Legislative Policy Committee (LPC) traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with 80 Hill offices in an effort to encourage lawmakers to cosponsor H.R.9522 and S.5008, bills to modernize the Short Line Maintenance Tax Credit, known as the 45G tax credit.
The scheduled meetings included the offices of Representative Sam Graves (R-Mo.), who is chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee, and Representative Troy Nehls (R-Texas) who is chair of the T&I Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials.
The 45G credit has been a wildly successful public policy that has driven more than $8 billion in investment since its inception in 2005. However, inflation and limits to eligible track are eroding its potency. The proposed modernization bills will increase the 45G tax credit to $6,100 per track mile from $3,500, index the credit cap per mile to inflation in future years and update qualified railroad track maintenance expenditures by including track owned or leased on Jan. 1, 2024 instead of the current Jan. 1, 2015. Senators Ron Wyden (D-Wash.) and Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and Representatives Earl Blumenauer (D-Wash.) and Mike Kelly (R-Pa.) introduced their legislation on Sept. 10.
ASLRRA appreciates the LPC members who were able to participate in the event. The Association will continue to push for cosponsors throughout the rest of the 118th Congress in preparation for reintroduction of the bills in the new 119th Congress that will be seated in 2025. ASLRRA’s Tax Policy information page and 45G position paper offer more information about the tax credit and the ways it benefits the U.S. freight rail system and supply chain.
ASLRRA Vice President, Communications Amy Krouse took a picture outside Congress before heading in to participate in meetings with congressional offices on Sept. 19. Krouse and others were on Capitol Hill to build support for House and Senate bills that would modernize the Short Line Maintenance Tax Credit, also known as the 45G tax credit.
In addition to the upcoming Central and Pacific Region Meeting, ASLRRA will host the General Counsel Symposium and the Finance & Administration Seminar, which are co-located with the regional meeting in Dallas, Texas.
These targeted educational events offer sessions focused on information for legal, human resources and administrative professionals in the rail industry. General Counsel Symposium attendees can attend an antitrust legal update, railroad law master class or general counsel roundtable, hear about broadband crossing issues, receive an update on ASLRRA litigation efforts and more. They can also register to receive 6.25 or 7.50 continuing legal education (CLE) credit hours depending on their state.
Finance & Administration Seminar attendees can learn about employee turnover and the cost of attrition, pre-employment functional testing, drug and alcohol regulations, payroll hot topics, retirement planning and more.
The General Counsel Symposium will take place Oct. 28 to 29 and the Finance & Administration Seminar will take place Oct. 29 to 30, while the Central and Pacific Region Meeting will take place Oct. 28 to 30. Lodging for all three events is available at the Westin Galleria Dallas, but the discounted hotel rate in ASLRRA’s room block ends Oct. 7.
ASLRRA reminds its members that the Association does not partner with outside groups to book registration or hotel rooms and does not authorize any individuals or companies to do so on ASLRRA’s behalf. ASLRRA will not contact you directly via phone or email to make hotel reservations.
The only way to register for events is through ASLRRA communications and its website. Likewise, the only way to book a hotel room in ASLRRA’s room block at special rates is by using links provided on the Association’s website or by contacting the hotel directly using information and codes from ASLRRA.
The Georgia Department of Transportation will begin accepting grant applications on Oct. 1 for the Georgia Freight Rail Program (GFRP). The application period will close Jan. 1.
This is the second year Georgia will offer grants through this program. A number of different project types are eligible, including those that improve railways or railroad equipment, acquire or lease short line railways and build or improve industrial access to rail. One-third of available funding will go to short line railroads.
Funding for the GFRP comes from the state’s Locomotive Fuel Tax Program (LFTP). A grant application guide is available here, while a description of Georgia’s locomotive fuel tax policy is here. Both applications and any related inquiries can be sent to FreightRailApplications@dot.ga.gov.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced $18 million in funding will go to projects meant to strengthen the state’s supply chain and increase storage for aggregates used in infrastructure and asphalt and concrete production.
ASLRRA member Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad will receive $3.7 million to design and construct an aggregate terminal that can accommodate 200,000 additional tons of aggregate per year and 48 rail cars. Other funding will go to CSX, the Port of Tampa Bay, the Jacksonville Port Authority and Capital Asphalt. The state plans to award $100 million for these types of projects over the next five years.
The family of Eugene (Gene) Blabey, II, a longtime railroader and a member of the first group inducted into the Short Line Railroad Industry Hall of Fame, announced arrangements for two services honoring Blabey’s life.
On Oct. 26 a celebration of life will take place at the Emmanuel Baptist Church in Albany, New York. Visitation will start at 10 a.m. with services to begin at 11. On Oct. 27 there will be a gathering at the Livonia, Avon & Lakeville Railroad Engine House starting at 10 a.m. Those wishing to attend the second gathering are asked to RSVP no later than Oct. 18. More information about both events can be found here.
In lieu of flowers, Blabey’s family asks for contributions to be made in Eugene H. Blabey’s name to the American Parkinson’s Disease Association (APDA). A direct link to the APDA contribution page is here. The family would also be happy to receive written versions of people’s favorite stories about Blabey.
To help members plan for and cope with these events ASLRRA has assembled disaster preparedness resources available on the Association’s website. Railroad and supplier members helped ASLRRA develop essential templates and checklists to assist in the development of response plans that can be put in place and used as training tools before disaster strikes, as well as emergency response tools and resources to aid in the recovery process in the aftermath of a catastrophic event.
Resources on the Association’s Disaster Preparedness page include disaster planning, hazmat response and instructions on accessing an emergency docket, in addition to links to other government websites. ASLRRA members may download materials directly from the website. Find the Disaster Preparedness page under the Safety & Compliance tab.
Würth is ASLRRA’s Preferred Provider of personal protective equipment (PPE) and related services and their customer-first approach to service and support has a long history. Since opening their doors, Würth has helped thousands of companies protect their employees and work with optimum efficiency for maximum output. Their team of railroad specialists currently supports nearly 200 short line railroads, rail industry contractors and Class I railroad companies.
ASLRRA members can depend on Würth for quality safety and industrial products and exceptional customer service, plus discounted pricing on a huge assortment of products and equipment needed to implement an effective and efficient safety program. Offerings include foot and leg protection, signs, ergonomic products, hearing and eye protection, clothing protection, lighting and electrical products, storage containment and environmental spill cleanup, traffic control and much more.
Visit the Association’s Member Discount Program page to view Würth’s complete product offering and suite of services and start saving today.
Crystal Gitchell attended the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Council on Rail Transportation’s 2024 Annual Meeting this week in Norfolk, Virginia. She spoke on short line policy priorities during the freight states session.
This webinar includes an introduction to Operation Clean Sweep (OCS), of which ASLRRA is an official supporting member. OCS assists companies in their goal towards achieving zero plastic resin loss during operations, thereby keeping plastic out of the environment and surrounding waterways. The session will also discuss the OCS Rail program that was launched in 2024 as a new category of the OCS program specifically for rail partners and their operations. Several current OCS Rail members will also share individual case studies for an inside perspective on the program.
Speakers:
Sponsored by the American Chemistry Council
ASLRRA members are continuously working to implement innovative technology in a number of different areas. The Association has hosted several webinars focused on technology, particularly that used in railroad inspection and maintenance. Recordings of these webinars are available to members any time in ASLRRA’s On-Demand Webinar Library. Look for the following titles online:
Visit ASLRRA’s webinar homepage and log in to view all the on-demand offerings in the Association’s webinar library.
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), along with outreach group Transportation Community Awareness and Emergency Response (TRANSCAER) and Small Business Development Centers will host a HAZMAT Transportation Seminar Oct. 30 to Nov. 1 in Indianapolis, Indiana.
The event is free and will feature 20 different breakout sessions teaching attendees about PHMSA, PHMSA grants, the Emergency Response Guidebook and offering tools for small business success. Example session topics include rail car safety, shipping papers and emergency response, obtaining government contracts and lithium battery safety.
The session schedule for Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 is the same to allow attendees to participate in as many sessions as possible. Click here to register for the event. Individuals must select all the days they are planning to attend.
This week, rail safety education organization Operation Lifesaver, Inc. (OLI) is running its annual safety awareness campaign. During See Tracks? Think Train Week, formerly known as Rail Safety Week, OLI works with the U.S. Department of Transportation, state-level Operation Lifesaver groups and other organizations on in-person education events and social media campaigns to raise public awareness about safety around trains and railroad tracks.
On each day from Sept. 23 to Sept. 29, OLI focuses on a unique theme highlighting a different aspect of rail safety. This includes Tuesday’s Operation Clear Track, which involves law enforcement representatives and first responders sharing safety information at grade crossings. Other days feature messages targeted toward groups such as drivers, transit riders, pedestrians and photographers. Friday is Red Out for Rail Safety day, where individuals are encouraged to share pictures of themselves wearing red on social media to bring attention to rail safety.
ASLRRA joins other organizations, including many of its members and the Association of American Railroads, in supporting See Tracks? Think Train Week on social media. ASLRRA encourages individuals to like, share and repost these rail safety messages to help them reach wider audiences.
Find ASLRRA on LinkedIn, Facebook, and X.
This photograph of ASLRRA President Chuck Baker will be featured on the Association's social media profiles for Red Out for Rail Safety Day this Friday, part of Operation Lifesaver, Inc.'s annual week-long rail safety awareness campaign.
Look for this picture and other posts on social media, and help amplify the safety message by liking, sharing and reposting content from ASLRRA and other rail organizations.
Click here for a calendar of industry events.
Views & News is published by American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association.
Please contact Mariel Takamura, associate editor, with questions or comments.
