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The New York & Atlantic Railway (NYA), the Glendale, Queens-based short line railroad, has named veteran transportation manager John Gleeson as Director of Sales and Marketing, effective October 17. He succeeds Charles Samul, who is retiring from the railroad early in 2023.
Gleeson comes to NYA with nearly 20 years of experience working on the customer and supplier side of the railroad industry. Most recently, he developed rail facilities at Arizona Beverages USA and led the inception of rail shipments out of the company’s Edison, N.J. production and distribution center.
In previous positions, Gleeson managed the tank-car fleet for Illinois-based chemical and automotive fluids producer Old World Industries and later supervised transportation services for railcar lessor GATX Corp.
A native of Chicago, Gleeson has a B.A. in communication from Loyola University, Chicago.
New York & Atlantic Railway (www.anacostia.com/railroads/nya), a subsidiary of Chicago-based Anacostia Rail Holdings (ARH), offers freight service on 270 route miles of track and began operations in May 1997. Traffic carried by NYA includes lumber, paper, building materials, plastic, aggregates, food products, and recyclables.
“I’m thrilled to be joining such a talented and dynamic team,” says Gleeson. “New York & Atlantic’s culture is infectious. Everyone is highly motivated and pulling in the same direction. It is impossible not to get excited about working in this environment. I can’t wait to spend more time with all our shippers to see how we can continue to do progressively more.”
ARH Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer Eric Jakubowski says Samul will continue to work with Gleeson to support the transition, and he looks forward to the insights Gleeson will bring to NYA’s customer relationships.
Jakubowski says, “John’s experience as a rail customer and equipment expert is an important element in the strategy of continuing to support entrepreneurial growth on our railroad. He understands supply chains and the critical steps necessary to initiate rail service.”
It’s a sentiment echoed by James Bonner, NYA president. “We’re pleased John has joined us at NYA,” says Bonner. “As we continue to grow traffic and positively impact this region, John’s efforts will complement the momentum and success Chuck has delivered over the past eight years.”
Outgoing Director of Sales and Marketing Chuck Samul notes, “John emerged as the clear choice from a talented group of applicants. I feel confident in turning over the job of developing new business and managing existing relationships with customers and our connecting rail partners.”