Railway Age / RT&S Light Rail 2025

Agenda subject to change.

All sessions and functions to take place in the Grand Ballroom.

Conference Moderator:
William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-Chief, Railway Age

Wednesday, October 1 

8:00 AM
Registration / Conference Check-in
Continental Breakfast

9:00 AM
Keynote Address
Andy Lukaszewicz, Deputy Chief Officer Rail Operations, Pittsburgh Regional Transit

9:30 AM
New Rolling Stock for Cleveland
Bryan K. Moore, Manager, Railcar Replacement Program, Greater Cleveland RTA
Casey Blaze, Rail Equipment Manager, Greater Cleveland RTA

10:15 AM
Coffee Break
Sponsored by Railroad Development Corporation

10:45 AM
TDI Pop-Up Metro New-Start Initiatives
Moderator: David Peter Alan, Contributing Editor, Railway Age
Henry Posner III, Chair, Railroad Development Corporation
Nate Asplund, President, Pop-Up Metro LLC
T. R. Hickey, Pro from Dover, West Chester Intersection, LLC

11:45 AM
MBTA Green Line Train Positioning Technologies
Robert Hanczor, Founder and CEO,Piper Networks

12:00 PM
Luncheon

1:30 PM
Engineering for Operations & Service Delivery
John Mardente, Civil Engineer, Passenger Rail Division, Federal Railroad Administration
Alfred E. Fazio, P.E., Consultant, BRT Rail Services
T. R. Hickey, Pro from Dover, West Chester Intersection, LLC
Bill Koch, Sales Representative – Great Lakes Region, MAC Products, LLC

3:00 PM
Afternoon Energy Break
Sponsored by Electric Components a.s.

3:15 PM
Pittsburgh Regional Transit Vehicle and Network Control Advancements

Legacy Fleet Maintenance Best Practices
Justin Selepack, Director of Rail Car Maintenance, Pittsburgh Regional Transit

Rail Traffic Operations Control Center Carrier Transmission Systems Integration
Chris Costiloe, Director of LRT & Bus Systems Electronics, Pittsburgh Regional Transit

4:15 PM
Case Study: Existing AI-Based Applications Suitable for Light Rail
Tony Crosby, Chief Executive Officer, 4Tel Pty., Ltd.

4:30 PM
Embracing Sustainability & Resiliency through Education & Professional Development
Barbara M. Schroeder, P.E., P.M.P., Rail Transit Project Manager, Benesch

5:00 PM
Networking Reception

6:00 PM
Conference Day Ends

Thursday, October 2 

8:00 AM
Continental Breakfast

9:00 AM
Reconfiguring Riverside Yard for Type 10 “Supercars” on the MBTA Green Line
Rachel J. Burckardt, P.E., Senior Vice President / Senior Project Manager, Northeast Lead, Freight Rail National Business Line, WSP USA

10:00 AM
Coffee Break
Sponsored by Stadler Rail

10:30 AM
LRV Wheel/Rail Interface Interaction
Harry Skoblenick, M.Sc., P. Eng., Senior Expert, Wayside Engineering and Digital and Integrated Systems, Region Americas, Alstom

11:15 AM
Case Study: Green Technology Applications for Light Rail
Hans Cruse, Sales Manager LRV/North American Streetcar Market, Stadler Rail

11:30 AM
End of Conference Sessions
Boxed Lunches Available

12:45 PM
Transit Tour of Pittsburgh Regional Transit
Sponsored by Benesch

Please wear closed-toe shoes without a heel. Signed waivers are required.

Participants will meet in the Fairmont Pittsburgh lobby by 12:45 PM.

From there, participants will walk to the Gateway LRT Station (about a 4-minute walk from the hotel) where we’ll board a special event train on PRT’s BLUE Line for direct service to South Hills Village. Upon arrival, participants will disembark at the high-level front door of our Treasury Building. An ADA ramp is available for any guests who may require accommodation. The group will then be split for a guided tour of the South Hills Village Rail Car Maintenance Facility and Transportation Building. Each guest will receive a safety vest and a safety briefing prior to entering the facility.

The tour will include a walkthrough of PRT’s running and heavy repair departments, highlighting how they keep their light rail vehicles in a state of good repair. There will also be an overview of the Rail Traffic Operations Center and Bus Traffic Operations with insight into how these two teams work together to keep Pittsburgh moving.

Following the tour, the group will reboard the event train from the staging yard and return to Gateway Station.

5:30 PM
Approximate Return Time to Hotel

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