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Chair’s Welcome Message

On behalf of the organizing committee, I am honored and delighted to welcome you to the
Joint Rail Conference 2016. This year the conference is held in the “famously hot” Columbia,
the capital city of South Carolina where “beautiful places and smiling faces” is more than our
state’s motto, it is our way of life. I believe we have chosen a venue that guarantees a
successful technical conference amid the culture and scenery of a thriving metropolis with a
rich history that has emerged as a destination for meetings, conferences and conventions in
the south.
Columbia is home to the University of South Carolina, where one of the new programs in
Railroad Engineering in the country has incubated and fully developed in recent years in the
department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. I am extremely proud to be part of this
effort. With activities in research, education and technology transfer related to railway
engineering, we have been contributing to workforce development and the advancement of
knowledge, preparing, thus, the new generation of industry leaders. Although South
Carolina is not perceived as a “major railroad state”, more than ever before the rail system in
the state has become a crucial component of multimodal networks in the country, due to the
increasing freight volumes seen in the state’s ports following the widening of the Panama
Canal. The rail system in the state is operated by 11 rail carriers ranging in size from small
intrastate railroads to members of large rail systems serving the entire eastern U.S. Of the
line-haul railroads, two are Class I carriers (CSXT and NS) that represent about 85% of the rail
system while Class III carriers comprise the remaining ones.

The theme of the conference is ““Railroads – Progress Toward a Safe, Sustainable Future”.
This is a truly multidisciplinary conference that attracts international participants and is
co-sponsored by major technical organizations including APTA, AREMA, ASME, ASCE, IEEE,
INFORMS, TRB, the National University Rail Center (NURail), and the University of South
Carolina. Our technical program is rich and varied with two keynote speeches and over 100
technical papers and presentations split among five parallel sessions each day covering all
aspects of railroad civil, mechanical, electrical, and systems engineering, as well as rail
safety, planning, design, financing, operations, and management. We are pleased to have Mr.
Tod Echler (CSX) and Mr. Patrick McCrory (Palmetto Railways) as our keynote speakers
discussing topics on the Technology Transformation of the Rail Industry and the Rail Industry
in SC, respectively. There are 2 technical tours that will also provide technology demonstra-
tions, as well as other opportunities that will give participants a platform for informal
networking, to exchange ideas, and meet old and new friends.
As a conference chair of JRC 2016, I know that the success of the conference depends on the
delegates and ultimately on the many people who have worked diligently behind the scenes
in planning and organizing both the technical program and supporting social arrangements;
to all I extend my sincere appreciations.
Dimitris Rizos
All of us at the University of South Carolina, the Advanced Railway Technology Group and the
local organizing committee are looking forward to welcome you to Columbia and wish you a Conference Chair
superb JRC 2016 conference experience and a memorable stay. ASCE
Welcome “Y’all”! University of South Carolina

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