Outlook 2017: Bill Dorris, J-Track LLC Central Division

J-Track LLC is headquartered in College Point, N.Y. In May, J-Track opened a new Central Division operation based in Lisle, Ill., a suburb of Chicago. As everyone knows, timing is everything. The timing in starting this new venture in Chicago has worked out well for us. A slower-than-normal 2016 in the rail industry is not a good thing under normal circumstances, but it did allow us to take a slow and steady pace in opening this new business taking advantage of the opportunities that were afforded us during the second half of 2016.

During the presidential election process, both Clinton and Trump stated that they supported large infrastructure programs as part of their election platforms — great news for the construction industry. If this support actually comes to fruition, we will see the start of many new projects in the coming year. Clinton had outlined a five-year, $275 billion dollar program, while Trump stated that he intended to double this amount. The rail industry is a huge part of our infrastructure and is currently in need of tremendous repairs and upgrades, which have been lagging behind now for years. Such spends would generate a lot of track work for design engineering companies, rail contractors, suppliers and many other businesses that play a pivotal role in our industry.

J-Track's New York and Chicago divisions look forward to gaining our share of the work to be let for public and private bid opportunities in 2017. We are very well positioned within the two largest rail markets in the country, and expect the coming year to be full of new projects and new challenges alike.

Our experienced workforce continues to grow along with our customer base. We look forward to each and every opportunity to provide our skill set and experience to a vast array of customers that include transit agencies, Class I roads, short lines and private industry.

I would like to wish all my friends, colleagues and the rail industry as a whole, a safe, healthy and prosperous 2017.

Larry Laurello, Delta Railroad Construction Inc.
Greg Grissom, Georgetown Rail Equipment Inc.
Kevin Riddett, RailWorks Corp.
Don Alexander, Savage