North Shore Railroad makes several management changes

North Shore Railroad Co. recently made a number of appointments to transition to new leadership in several departments because two long-time contributors — Safety and Compliance Manager Charles Feinauer and General Car Foreman Harry Young — have elected to retire in July.

The company named Philip Lucas safety and compliance manager; Patrick McGaw, general car foreman; Eric Kift, assistant general car foreman; James Mackey, general manager of the Nittany & Bald Eagle Railroad Co.; and Gregory Kerstetter, GM of the Juniata Valley Railroad.

Most recently GM of the Nittany & Bald Eagle Railroad, Lucas will be responsible for assuring the consistency of safety and operations company-wide, covering all disciplines. He joined North Shore Railroad in 1996.

McGaw, who joined the company in 2001 as a conductor, most recently was MoE field supervisor, while Kift, who started with the Lycoming Valley Railroad Co. in 2007, has progressed through numerous train service and car repair positions.

A North Shore Railroad employee since 1999, Mackey most recently was GM of the Juniata Valley Railroad and previously was assistant GM of the Nittany & Bald Eagle Railroad. Kerstetter, who joined the company in 2010, previously was a conductor and engineer.

Meanwhile, North Shore Railroad also promoted Walter Simcox from superintendent of track to director of engineering, and Pete Symons from assistant superintendent of track to superintendent of track.

Simcox will report to President and Chief Executive Officer Gary Shields and be responsible for the annual maintenance-of-way plan and budget. He previously held various positions with the Penn Central Railroad, Conrail and Amtrak.

Symons will report to Simcox and oversee the MOW department and day-to-day maintenance operations. He previously served the Reading Railroad and Conrail in various capacities.