RALEIGH, N.C. – Jason Orthner has always loved trains.

“Just the way they operate,” he said. “It's almost like a symphony, or an orchestra.”

What You Need To Know

  • Jason Orthner directs NCDOT's Rail Division

  • As a child, he liked to play with model railroads

  • He still goes on long-distance train trips from time to time
 
As a child, Orthner enjoyed planning out routes for his model railroads. He often went so far as to sketch them out using graph paper and straight edge rulers.

“Some of the dreams were bigger than what I actually accomplished, but I learned that having a good plan is great to actually establish an operating system,” he said.

Orther went to college already knowing he wanted to do something railroad-related. He joined NCDOT in 2000 and became director of the Rail Division in 2018.

Orthner's job puts him in charge of more than two dozen rail corridors, most of them freight-related. Five Amtrak trains provide passenger rail service to an arc of cities in North Carolina, including Raleigh, Charlotte, Greensboro, Burlington, High Point and Rocky Mount.

He said expanding passenger rail remains one of his passions. Unlike other forms of public transit, Orthner said trains run on a completely separate system, so they can bypass congested roads. 

NCDOT statistics show passenger rail use is growing in North Carolina. In September of 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic began, ridership on Amtrak's Piedmont route had grown by 24% compared to a year earlier, while the Carolinian route saw 16% more riders. Revenue on the two routes rose by 21% and 11%, respectively.

Orthner said rail is a growing industry, and it's never too early to get into trains. 

“If you're a kid and you're interested in building new systems, innovating, creating the transportation systems of the future, this is a great time to start thinking about that,” he said.

Daily use aside, Orthner said he still gets a chance to take long-distance trips from time-to-time. In North Carolina, he recommends the Great Smoky Mountain Railroad and the New Hope Valley Railway. If you're looking for a good cross-country trip, he suggests the Empire Builder in the Pacific Northwest or the California Zephyr west out of Denver.