From the editor: PSR is top of mind in all sorts of places

For the U.S. rail realm, this year’s legislative priorities — passing a permanent extension of the 45G short-line tax credit, maintaining existing truck size and weight restrictions, keeping the regulatory playing field “balanced” for freight railroads — are, for the most part, of the usual-suspect variety, as Senior Associate Editor Julie Sneider reports in this month’s cover story. But rail advocates have a few other concerns they’ll be talking about with lawmakers and their staffers — including the potential monitoring of railroads that implement precision scheduled railroading (PSR).

Last month, Railway Supply Institute Vice President of Government Affairs Nicole Brewin told Sneider she’d heard rumblings that congressional hearings could be in the offing on such topics as PSR. We heard similar comments about oversight interest in PSR late last fall during our annual RailTrends summit.

In the months ahead, PSR will continue to alter the rail landscape. It’ll also continue to impact any number of links in the railroad chain, including the supply of freight cars, as AllTranstek LLC Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer Richard Kloster notes in the column he penned for our 2019 Finance & Leasing Guide.

PSR is top of mind in rail country, so it’ll continue to be front and center in our coverage. As ever, we’ll share what we see and hear in our Daily News or within these pages.

Wanted: Your ‘Rising Stars’ nominations

Last month, we opened the nomination process for our seventh annual “Rising Stars” Awards, a recognition program for up-and-coming leaders in the North American rail industry. Progressive Railroading defines a Rising Star as someone under the age of 40 who is making a positive difference in his or her company, department or team, and is viewed by others — peers, colleagues, supervisors, clients or associates — as a rising star in the rail industry.

This year, we’ll select 25 Rising Stars and publish their profiles in our September issue. Also, the Rising Stars of 2019 will be honored at a recognition dinner on July 22 in Norfolk, Virginia.

Nominees must be younger than 40 years of age on Sept. 1, 2019, and currently work in North America’s rail industry. Rising Star candidates must be willing to participate in our process, answer questions from our staff and supply a photo for publication.

To nominate a Rising Star, fill out the form at progressiverailroading.com/risingstars. In a written statement, explain how the nominee goes above and beyond to make a difference in the railroad industry.

Candidates will be considered based on qualities such as their contributions to railroading, career achievements, demonstrated leadership, education, training, and professional association activity or community involvement. The nomination deadline has been extended to Feb. 26.

Questions? Call Senior Associate Editor Julie Sneider at 414-228-7701, ext. 517, or email her at julie.sneider@tradepress.com.