In Feb. 2012, Jonathan (Jon) joined Transtar as General Manager, later serving as President of the Transtar Companies with USS until July 2021. Jon remained Transtar’s President through the sale process, and was named CEO in Feb 2023. Previously, Mr. Carnes held roles including President and Chairman at the Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis, GM at NKCR (an OmniTRAX Inc. company), and various positions at CSX. He holds two bachelor’s from the University of N. Florida and an EMBA from the University of Pittsburgh, Katz Graduate School of Business.

Transtar’s Senior VP, Chief Legal & Compliance Officer, and Corporate Secretary since U. S. Steel’s divestiture in 2021, previously served as Senior Counsel in the U.S. Steel Legal Department for over a decade. His legal career began at the global law firm K&L Gates. Mr. Fearing holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Clarion University of Pennsylvania and a Juris Doctor, cum laude, from Duquesne University School of Law.

Joined Transtar in April 2022, became CFO in Feb. 2023. Previously CFO at Katahdin Railcar Services, VP at Central Maine & Quebec Railway, instrumental in its sale to Canadian Pacific in 2019. Earlier, held leadership roles at Campbell Soup Company in Supply Chain, Corporate Audit, and Finance. Holds a B.A. in Financial Economics from Saint Anselm College.

John W. Burwinkel III (J.W.) serves as Senior VP and Chief Commercial Officer since Aug. 2022.  He previously served as Transtar’s VP of Administration. JW joined the Transtar family in Oct. 2006 (Union Railroad) and since has held diverse positions in the railroad sector including IT, supply chain and multiple marketing roles. Mr. Burwinkel holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Pittsburgh Johnstown and an MBA from Point Park University.

Vice President of Labor Relations & Human Resources, rejoined Transtar in Aug. 2021. Served as Director of Labor & Workforce Relations at Highmark Health and held roles in labor and employee relations within both Class I and short line railroads. He is a certified Senior Professional in Human Resources, possesses a bachelor’s degree in political science, an MBA, and is currently pursuing a Juris Doctorate at Duquesne University School of Law.

He joined Transtar in Sep. 2021. Alex previously served in IT and rail operations leadership positions with the short line holding company Carload Express, Inc.  Previously, Alex worked for 14 years at Carnegie Mellon University in a variety of IT leadership roles.  Alex earned a Bachelors degree from Lebanon Valley College and a MS in IT Management from Carnegie Mellon University.

Scott Conner was named Vice President of Operations in August 2021. He joined Transtar in September 2017 where he led efforts to improve safety and operational performance. Prior to joining Transtar he held various leadership positions during his 22-year career with CSX Transportation. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Georgia Southern College and attended the Harvard Business Leadership Program.

Vice President Commercial joined Transtar in Sept. 2022. He is a proud member of the Midwest Association of Rail Shippers and currently serves as Vice President. He has held multiple commercial leadership roles with CSX, Canadian Pacific Railway, Genesee & Wyoming and the L.B. Foster Company. Mr. O’Kray earned a Bachelors degree from Western Illinois University and received a MS from Northern Illinois University.

Jeff joined Transtar in 1988 as an entry level programmer with the IT department.  In 2006 Jeff moved to the Asset Management Department as Director and in 2009 moved to the US Steel Global Procurement Department.  After a short stint between 2019 and 2021 with the Kennametal, Inc’s Global Procurement Team, he came back to Transtar as VP of Engineering & Asset Management.  In this role Jeff oversees purchasing, inventory management, engineering services, real estate, and the sale of non-core assets.   He holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from the University of Pittsburgh.