(The following appeared on the Wisconsin State Journal website on March 12, 2009.)
MADISON, Wisc. — Milwaukee-based Wisconsin & Southern Railroad Co. (WSOR) was named the 2009 Regional Railroad of the Year by Railway Age magazine, company officials said this week.
The honor, for which more than 500 railroad companies throughout North America competed, recognizes achievements in marketing, customer service and long-term planning in the short-line and regional railroad industry. Despite recent declines in freight rail traffic nationwide, the WSOR was able to attract eight new customers in 2008, representing nearly 7 percent of the company’s total customer base in a single year, according to company spokesman Ken Lucht.
The WSOR has offices and terminal yard facilities in Madison, Janesville and Horicon. The railroad operates in the southern half of Wisconsin and in northeastern Illinois over 700 miles of branch and mainline track.