We use cookies to provide you with a better experience. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies in accordance with our Cookie Policy.
  • INDUSTRY PRESS ROOM
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • MEDIA FILE
  • Create Account
  • Sign In
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Free Newsletters
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC
    • Podcast
    • Webcasts
    • Blogs
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Global Logistics and Risk
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • Parcel Forum 2022
    • MODEX 2022
    • Upload Your Video
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC
    • Podcast
    • Webcasts
    • Blogs
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Global Logistics and Risk
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • Parcel Forum 2022
    • MODEX 2022
    • Upload Your Video
Home » Hamberger, head of AAR, to retire from group in early 2019
newsworthy

Hamberger, head of AAR, to retire from group in early 2019

May 16, 2018
DC Velocity Staff
No Comments

Edward R. Hamberger, who as president and CEO of the Association of American Railroads (AAR) presided over the organization's growing influence as a lobbying force on Capitol Hill and at the regulatory agencies, said today he will retire from the group in early 2019 after more than 20 years at the helm.

Hamberger, who became AAR's president and CEO in 1998, is the longest-tenured head of the 84-year-old organization. Executive search firm Korn Ferry has been retained to lead the search for his successor, AAR announced today.

Besides his time at AAR, Hamberger worked for 20 years as the assistant secretary of governmental affairs at the Department of Transportation, and as general counsel at the National Transportation Policy Study Commission. During his tenure at AAR, he has been called 85 times to testify before Congress on rail and transport policy.

The railroads have always been formidable players in Washington. The old Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC), which ironically was established by Congress in 1887 to curb alleged pricing abuses by the railroads, eventually evolved into an agency that was considered a supporter of the industry. A standing joke in political circles was that the ICC never met a rail merger it didn't like, until in 1987 it stunned everyone by denying the proposed combination of the Southern Pacific Transportation Co. and the Santa Fe Railway.

Under Hamberger's stewardship, the AAR successfully fended off legislative efforts to raise truck size and weight limits that have been in place since 1982. It has defeated moves in Congress to require railroads to provide competitive access to captive shippers, and has kept at bay efforts by the shipper group National Industrial Transportation League to persuade the ICC's successor agency, the Surface Transportation Board, to impose similar requirements.

The AAR supported legislation in 2008 requiring railroads to install "positive train control" on their networks to automatically control, and if necessary, stop a train to prevent an accident. Several railroads complained that the law amounted to an unfunded mandate that imposed a significant cost burden. AAR lobbied lawmakers to pass legislation extending the implementation deadline to 2018 from 2015.

Part of Hamberger's success lay in his ability to frame potentially adverse legislation or regulation as efforts to re-regulate an industry that had finally hit its economic stride after years in the wilderness. He has also engaged the American Trucking Associations (ATA) in a running battle over funding. AAR maintains that its members invest their own capital to make improvements while the trucking industry relies on fuels taxes paid by motorists and truckers alike to fund its business, as well as frequent transfers of funds from the general treasury to the Highway Trust Fund to keep the trust fund afloat.

Transportation Trucking Rail Regulation/Government Truckload Less-than-Truckload
KEYWORDS AAR - Association of American Railroads American Trucking Associations Korn Ferry U.S. Department of Transportation
  • Related Articles

    Spear named head of ATA; Graves to retire after 13 years at helm

    Logue to retire as head of FedEx Freight at year's end

    Ducker, head of FedEx Freight, to retire Aug. 15

Recent Articles by DC Velocity Staff

Companies to grow investments in energy-transition solutions, emissions reduction

Cargo imports forecast to sink near three-year low in February

Air cargo demand slumped in 2022 after “extraordinary” levels in 2021

You must login or register in order to post a comment.

Report Abusive Comment

Most Popular Articles

  • Schneider welcomes first battery-electric truck

  • Fred Smith is not worried about Amazon

  • RJW LOGISTICS GROUP EXPANDS RETAIL LOGISTICS OPERATION TO DALLAS

  • Researchers: Ships can look to Mother Nature for energy-saving ideas

  • Maersk deploys indoor drones for warehouse inventory counts

Now Playing on DCV-TV

C8c3bc6b a91d 4181 a18f 35f288257630

ACPaQ: Fast and reliable automated mixed case palletizer

DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
Fully Automated Mixed Case Palletizing ACPaQ is a universally applicable solution for fully automated order picking of mixed case pallets based on customers‘ requirements. Its software allows you to customize the palletizing order to increase efficiency during in-store replenishment. The mixed case palletizer...

FEATURED WHITE PAPERS

  • The five best applications for robotic lift trucks in warehouse environments

  • Fulfillment Facility Improved Efficiencies by 4x

  • 3PLs: Complete Orders Faster with Flexible Automation

  • Reusable Packaging for the New Wave of Supply Chain Automation

View More

Subscribe to DC Velocity Magazine

GET YOUR FREE SUBSCRIPTION
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • NEWSLETTERS
  • ADVERTISING
  • CUSTOMER CARE
  • CONTACT
  • ABOUT
  • STAFF
  • PRIVACY POLICY

Copyright ©2023. All Rights ReservedDesign, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing