NCDOT promotes Orthner to rail division director

The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) announced Jason Orthner has been named director of the department's rail division.

Orthner joined NCDOT in 2000 as a senior project engineer in the rail division and subsequently held the role of engineering manager. Since 2013, he has managed the division's design and construction branch.

He has led many statewide projects and initiatives, including the North Carolina Railroad Improvement Program; the statewide grade-crossing warning device program; and the Piedmont Improvement Program, the state's largest multiyear railroad infrastructure program.

Orthner has worked in railroad project and program management for more than 23 years. His interest in railroad engineering and operations began at a young age, NCDOT officials said in a press release.