Episodes

Welcome to the American Railroading Podcast! In this episode, our Season 3 Finale, our host Don Walsh is joined by guest Ian Jefferies, President and CEO of the Association of American Railroads! Together they discuss why the AAR was created, who the AAR is, what they do, all the tremendous resources they offer their members and the industry as a whole, including resources like their subsidiaries RailInc and MxVRail. Ian also gives his thoughts on industry highlights from 2025, and what he’s loo...

Welcome to the American Railroading Podcast! In this our 2nd Annual Christmas Special our host Don Walsh is joined by guest and 15-time Texas country music chart-topper Bri Bagwell! Together they discuss Bri’s incredible journey to becoming Texas Female Country Music Artist of the Decade, as well as Bri’s favorite Christmas songs and memories. Bri gives amazing live performances of her favorite train song and a beautiful Christmas song that she co-wrote with her dad and her cousin. Bri also shar...

Welcome to the American Railroading Podcast! In this episode our host Don Walsh is joined by guest Chuck Baker, President of the American Short Line & Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA). Together they discuss the story of the American short line railroads including their origins, their near demise due to regulations and increased trucking, their re-birth after deregulation, their significant role and impact on the U.S. economy, the effect of a government shutdown on the industry, and much mo...

Welcome to the American Railroading Podcast! In this episode our host Don Walsh is joined by guest Eric Starks, Chairman of FTR (Freight Transportation Research Associates). Together they discuss the pending $85 billion dollar Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern merger, the current status of the U.S. economy, an update on U.S. manufacturing and production including new railcar production, rail traffic, market trends and risks, a forecast for 2026 and much more. We also announce our 2025 Honor our...

Welcome to the American Railroading Podcast! In this Fun Rail Excursions episode our host Don Walsh is joined by guest Mary Jo Naschke, Director of Marketing for the Galveston Railroad Museum in Galveston, TX. Together they discuss the history of Galveston as a major port city in a young and growing United States in the 1800’s and the vital importance the railroad played in Galveston and beyond in the southwest United States. They also go through all the wonderful exhibits at the museum, the edu...

Welcome to the American Railroading Podcast! In this episode our host Don Walsh is joined by guest Tom DeLafosse, SVP of Quality and Regulatory Compliance for Salco Products. Together they do a deep dive into tank car regulations, rulings and pending rulings such as HM-216b, HM-265 and HM-264, including the history of the industry before these regulations and rulings, the reasoning behind the creation of them, and their current as well as potential future impact on car owners, repair shops and s...

Welcome to the American Railroading Podcast! In this episode our host Don Walsh is joined by guest Kate Suprenuk, President of Leasing & Manufacturing at Union Tank Car (UTLX) & Procor. Together they discuss the current state of the new tank car market, the tank car leasing market, and they touch on the history of Union Tank Car Company, formed in 1891 by Standard Oil Company founded by John D. Rockefeller. Tune in to this episode to gain valuable insights and broaden your understanding of Ameri...

Welcome to the American Railroading Podcast! In this episode our host Don Walsh is joined by guest Jeff Necciai, Chief Technology Officer of Duos Technologies, Inc. Together they discuss the importance of timely and accurate railcar inspections, how far railcar inspection technology has come over the last 25 to 30 years, how important railcar inspections are to safety, the role Ai is playing in the advancement of railcar inspection technology, and its ability to promptly communicate its findings...

Welcome to the American Railroading Podcast! In this episode our host Don Walsh is joined by guest Denson White, Chief Commercial Officer of APM Terminals, Pier 400 in the Port of Los Angeles / Long Beach, CA. Together they discuss the current state of the U.S. supply chain, the effect that trade wars and tariffs can have on it, as well as how lessons learned during Covid will help those in supply chain today, and the surprising year-to-date stats of U.S. carload and intermodal traffic. Tune in ...

Welcome to the American Railroading Podcast! In this our 2nd Anniversary episode our host Don Walsh is joined by guest Tom Landstreet, Co-Founder of Trusco Investment Management. Together they discuss the current state of the U.S. economy post-Presidential election, and they do a deep dive into not only where our economy is today, but how we got here, how tariffs and other proposed methods or solutions may potentially help or contribute to inflation, and what this all can mean for the rail indus...

Welcome to the American Railroading Podcast! In this episode our host Don Walsh is joined by guest Patrick Fuchs, Chairman of the Surface Transportation Board (STB). Together they discuss who the STB is, how and why the STB was created, and they do a deep dive into not only all the various functions of the STB, but also all the different ways in which the STB is a valuable resource to the rail industry. Tune in to this episode to gain valuable insights and broaden your understanding of American ...

Welcome to the American Railroading Podcast! In this, our first episode of Season 3, our host Don Walsh is our guest. Producer John joins Don on this episode and together they take us on a journey to review each of the podcast episodes from Season 2 along with a look behind the scenes and share thoughts not heard before on the episodes themselves. They also discuss audience feedback and their favorite moments from Season 2, after which Producer John then interviews Don, and they discuss his thou...