Good afternoon to you all and I hope you are doing well.
I wanted to provide the membership with a brief update following the conclusion of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee markup on the Surface Transportation Reauthorization legislation and discuss what this could potentially mean for Texas Short Line Railroads moving forward.
March 13, 2025
Dear TSLRRA Members,
Austin, Texas - The Texas Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (TSLRRA) announced the 2023 the incoming executive board during their Annual Meeting held on February 13th in Austin, Texas.
Ailsa von Dobeneck, Watco; will be assuming the position of President. Her predecessor Paul Treangen, TNW Corporation; served for seven years in the role, growing the organization and spearheading outreach initiatives across the state. Rebecca Murphy, TGB Group; will continue as Treasurer. Jeff Van Schaick, Jaguar Transport Holdings; remains as Secretary; and Joey Evans, TNW Corporation; will serve as Vice President.
Dallas, Texas - The Texas Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (TSLRRA) announced the 2022 Executive Officers during its Annual Meeting held on March 31st in Dallas, Texas. The 2022 Executive Board is slated as: Paul Treangen (TNW Corporation) – President; Ailsa Von Dobeneck (Watco) - Vice President; Rebecca Murphy (TGB Group) – Treasurer; and Jeff Van Schaick (Jaguar Transport Holdings) - Secretary.
“I am proud of the progress the TSLRRA has made and feel confident the elected 2022 Officers will continue building for growth in the future.” Said Paul Treangen, TSLRRA’s President. “Representing the short line railroad industry to the state legislature and promoting the prosperity of our industry within Texas requires collaboration among our members. There’s a place for all TSLRRA members to get involved in our association and I’m pleased to see the ongoing efforts in raising awareness for TSLRRA,” said Paul Treangen.
This week marks Rail Safety Week 2021, whereby community and industry leaders encourage the public to make safe choices around railroad tracks and trains. Coincidentally this year’s rail safety week coincides with the final push to get infrastructure legislation across the finish line in Washington. This push means much more than new roads and bridges across the country, it also represents a serious opportunity to make our infrastructure safer, maintaining a fuel-efficient way to move freight while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Take the Texas freight rail system, a vast network of 54 rail companies operating across 10,500 track miles. While freight railroads are the safest way to move freight over land and always working to be even safer, the Senate-passed bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) contains hundreds of millions of dollars for improvements where roads intersect with railroad crossings and $5.5 billion for infrastructure grant programs.
TSLRRA is deeply saddened to report the passing of our faithful Board Member and Association Secretary, David Lutz, on August 22, 2021. David enjoyed a robust career in the railroading industry and recently retired from Temple and Central Texas Railway Company. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife Amanda, and daughter Ella.
