Pictured here is our handsome Maintenance of Equipment Department (Pat, Don, and Luke), working together and making work look fun.

Feature from the President
>300 Reasons

There are times when we all ask ourselves, “What motivates me to get up in the morning and do what I do?” Of course, family is an important and obvious reason, but sometimes there are significant moments that remind us of the other reasons we do what we do.

Recently, I had such a moment.

While we employ 73 individuals, this summer, I was incredibly honored to walk into the Knoebels pavilion, where our company picnic took place, and see more than 300 folks (in attendance) whom our company is directly impacting. To further put this into perspective, the 100 businesses, which we serve, employ approximately 26,000 individuals. Those 26,000 individuals have families, as well. Each day, everything we do at North Shore, no matter how non-glamorous it might feel, is critical to the well being of these families, our communities, and all of Central Pennsylvania. While many businesses feel like staunch and cold entities, they can, if administered properly, be very caring and driven by a concern for people and their lives. We will dedicate ourselves to a philosophy that maintains the latter, as, in my estimation, that is solely what makes it all worthwhile.

In order to properly take care of people, a company needs to run well. Our employees deserve all the credit for making us the well-oiled machine we are. A great deal of kudos also needs to go to our management team. They are out there each day, as well, making sure we are effective in our approach to accomplishing the work that faces us, and solving any issues that arise.

You will see a couple of articles in this On Track, from managers, who have a message to share about their teams. As I read these articles, the rationale of why we do what we do is reinforced. These leaders, in our company, truly value their teams and what each member brings to the table. I love this evidence of our management team being keenly aware that it is the boots on the ground that make us what and who we are.

As I have done in the past, I want to utilize this platform to recognize each and every employee and manager of this company. You have an incredibly important role in overcoming the challenges we face, to the benefit of: our families, the families of the customers we serve, and our communities. Do not ever think that your efforts go unnoticed. We see you; we appreciate you; we thank you!

Notes from Marketing
Rising Into the Fall

As the days grow shorter, and cooler, we are looking forward to autumn (yes - pumpkin and apple spices season). It is no secret that the national rail industry is not seeing the most robust economic conditions these days, but our Marketing Team is continuing to chase down leads and work with prospects.

We take all projects seriously. If there is a potential customer who could benefit from only a handful of railcars each year, we are eager to show them transload locations, because we know that each of those railcars symbolizes four tractor trailers for that business, and that could mean big savings for them. There is no project too small… or too large, for that matter.

In the last issue of On Track, we teased about Country View Family Farms, and the groundbreaking of this $47.3M project. We are excited to see the large towers and grain bins rising into the sky along I-80 - using a process called continuous pouring (of concrete). The main feed mill structure is 176 feet tall with the grain silos topping out at over 150 feet tall! The main tower has a 3,582-square-foot base. A shorter part of the structure, called a pelleting annex, is 56-feet tall and has a 2,016-square-foot base. The feed mill, when completed and operational, will produce 8,000 tons of finished feed each week, which equals 416,000 tons of finished feed per year.

It was our Marketing Team who suggested this property as the perfect location for this project - based upon the criteria set by Country View Family Farms.

When former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf made an announcement about Country View Family Farms, having selected Pennsylvania for this feed mill expansion project (that will create at least 51 new jobs in Union County), he said “Pennsylvania successfully competed against other states for this expansion - a project that will have a big impact on the regional and state economy. It’s a testament to the welcoming, positive business environment we have here in the commonwealth, especially for agribusinesses, that we were able to win this project.”

Country View Family Farm’s new feed mill will be served by our Union County Industrial Railroad. We are proud to have worked with the Country View Family Farms team and many others to land this facility in Union County, and we continue to work very closely with them and Norfolk Southern in preparation of their planned start – projected for next year (2024).

Large or small, we chase them all! What can we do for you?

Notes from Maintenance of Way
We Will Not Be Broken

All summer, our Maintenance of Way team (MoW) was up against the weather, spending multiple days (at a time) taking care of tree removal and track patrols - due to strong storms that kept ravaging through our area.

In July and August, MoW installed 1,932 linear feet of relay 131RE and 132RE rail in the Newberry Yard. The purpose of this project was to remove 105DY Rail (which was installed by the New York Central over a century ago) and eliminate many battered rail-ends, small rails, and kicked joints. The rail for this project was installed right off of a 132RE turnout in the West End of the Newberry Yard, which got us roughly half-way down this track. Once this project was complete, our team installed 500 new ties to make sure every new joint had an effective tie. The last step for this track upgrade will be surfacing in October.

Also in August, MoW forces replaced the State Route 42 crossing in Montour Township.

With all of this going on, the team managed to keep on top of inspections and any all regular maintenance - across the system.

The bottom line is, our MoW Department has thrived over a summer that would have broken many people. Whether it was mobilizing after nasty storms, installing new rail in the extreme heat, or replacing crossings over hot asphalt, these men never complained and safely got all of their work done. For their efforts I am extremely grateful! We have an amazing and talented team!

I’d also like to thank our Lycoming Valley Railroad Operations Department for accommodating us with the rail change project, which was very time consuming.

Notes from Communications & Signals
Together, We Can Accomplish Anything

When I took over the Communications & Signals Department (C&S) in 2018, I created a project board - full of upgrades and projects that needed to be completed within the department. Coming into 2023, getting these projects completed weighed heavy on me. It took a lot of hard work and long days from my men (and a lot of money from the company) to complete this work - a weight now lifted off of me and the C&S Department.

I really could not ask for a better group of guys to work with. Putting all four of us (JJ, Jesse, Glen, and me) in the same room together - we can accomplish just about anything.

One of our biggest projects we tackled was upgrading to sealed batteries in all of our signal cabinets, on one of our main lines. This is safer for inspectors, because now, they do not handle acid batteries; and crossing safety is improved because the crossing’s reserve energy lasts longer in loss of power situations (double to triple the amount of time versus the previous batteries).

Getting this project and the rest of the work that was on my project board done directly contributes to fewer emergency call-outs, representing a safety improvement for the public and allowing my men to spend more time with their families.

Another large project my guys took care of, beyond their regular work and inspections, was cleaning up old signal materials from various locations around our system. The property looks cleaner, and we were able to collect revenue on the scrap, which helped toward purchasing more modern signal equipment.

One of our signalmen, JJ, used to work for Maintenance of Way (MoW). I was fortunate to acquire him from MoW and add him to my team in C&S. Having JJ on my team has put us on a totally new level. We are now able to use bigger trucks and the backhoe, getting a lot of work done faster and safer (and saving a lot of back strain for the other signalmen).

I am so appreciative of my crew. They are fantastic workers who are very good at what they do. I look forward to working with them each day.

In the Community

Employees In the Community

Tartaglia Railroad Services
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