Pinsly / STB
Pinsly Railroad Company on Oct. 22 reported that Ryan Ratledge, President and CEO, has been appointed to the STB’s RSTAC as the Small Railroad Representative. He will serve a three-year term.
RSTAC provides advice and recommendations on regulatory, policy, and legislative matters to STB Board Members; the Secretary of Transportation; the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation; and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. The STB opened nominations for the role in July.
Ratledge brings more than 30 years of freight rail experience to RSTAC. Since joining Pinsly in 2022, he has led the company’s expansion from two to nine short lines through strategic acquisitions that also added warehousing, transload, and trucking capabilities.
“I am honored to represent Pinsly Railroad Company and small railroads across the country on the RSTAC committee,” said Ratledge, who was selected by Railway Age readers as one of ten Most Influential Leaders for 2025. “I look forward to the opportunity to positively impact the industry by contributing to RSTAC’s objectives.”
Pinsly’s network includes the Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad (FL), Grenada Railroad (MS), Hondo Railway (TX), Camp Chase Rail (OH), Chesapeake and Indiana Railroad (IN), Vermilion Valley Railroad (IN, IL), Pioneer Valley Railroad (MA), North Florida Industrial Railroad (FL), and its newest short line: Georgiana & Andalusia Railroad (AL).
HDR
Anna Lynn Smith, AICP, has returned to HDR to lead the firm’s intercity and high-speed rail practice, which encompasses planning, engineering, architecture, systems, signal engineering, zero-emissions mobility, strategic advisory services, and roadway disciplines. Based in Philadelphia, she will oversee strategy, client engagement, and market position for intercity and high-speed rail across rail and transit markets. Her work will primarily be focused on the United States and Canada.
Smith has more than 30 years of experience working on a variety of projects with state and federal agencies, metropolitan planning organizations, cities, transit agencies, railroads, and other clients across North America. Most recently, she was Vice President of Planning and Strategy at Amtrak, where she directed strategic planning across long-range, five-year, and annual initiatives, guiding service development, infrastructure planning, and sustainability goals.
Previously, Smith served in regional and national roles at HDR.
“With her background and decades of experience, Anna Lynn is the right person to lead HDR’s intercity and high-speed rail practice group,” said HDR Global Transit Director Matt Tucker, who recently joined the Board of Trustees at the Mineta Transportation Institute. “She has a deep understanding of the challenges our clients face and how to plan for the future to deliver successful passenger rail solutions.”
OLI
Four new State Coordinators for Colorado, the District of Columbia, Minnesota and West Virginia have joined OLI:
| State | Name |
| Colorado | Michelle Kempema |
| D.C. | Victoria Jenkins |
| Minnesota | Richard Hansen |
| West Virginia | Eric McEwuen |
OLI State Coordinators share rail safety education messages across their states. They also manage local volunteers and provide free customized rail safety education presentations to a variety of audiences, including professional drivers, students of all ages, new drivers, first responders, and others.
“We are excited to welcome these new State Coordinators, whose dedication to safety education and community outreach will undoubtedly make a significant impact in their states,” OLI Executive Director Rachel Maleh said. “They join a dedicated network of professionals committed to our mission of stopping track tragedies. Each new coordinator has a strong commitment to safety, which is essential as we continue our efforts to educate the public about the importance of making safe choices around tracks and trains. Their leadership brings unique perspectives and insights that will help ensure the rail safety education message successfully reaches individuals in their states.”
For a full directory of all OLI State Coordinators, click here.
