Matt Walker

• Safely operate locomotives and various other on-track equipment at a state of the art railroad testing facility owned by the Federal Railroad Administration.
• In addition to conducting various switching operations, primary job duties are to execute precise testing procedures for locomotives and rail equipment at the request and direction of test engineers for companies that include Siemens, Stadler, TTX, Progress Rail, and Kinkisharyo.
• Provide other wide-ranging support for testing personnel as needed.

Responsibilities & Achievements:

• Over 26 years of railroad experience as a Conductor and Locomotive Engineer. Knowledgeable of federal (49 CFR and AAR), state, and local railroad regulations, PTC, distributed power, railroad operating/safety, HAZMAT, and Air Brake/Train handling rules. Highly-experienced on road trains, locals, yard jobs, and hill pushers, as well as road and terminal operations.
• Leadership skills shown in managing day-to-day operations of outlying supply point regarding work plan and safety inspections for over eight years. Also served as primary point-of-contact for rail customers, local government officials, and fellow employees across all departments, earning their utmost confidence, trust, and respect.
• Voluntarily developed detailed, extensive (13,000+ words) training manual for Locomotive Engineer apprentices on geographical profile and sound train handling techniques for my subdivision.
• Achieved excellent safety record by making safety top priority. Passionate about instructing others on how to perform work safely, efficiently, and at a higher level.
• Highly-experienced in training, mentoring, and supervising new-hire conductors and engineer apprentices.
• Gained universal trust and respect of coworkers and supervisors for congeniality, professionalism, knowledge, interpersonal skills, and ability. One trainmaster told an anxious conductor working a new job with me, "Don't worry; you're working with the best engineer on the railroad."
• Strong work ethic, time management, and self-motivation evidenced by completion of final 72 credit hours of degree in just over 2 years, maintaining a 4.0 GPA - all while working a demanding 50-70 hour per week railroad schedule. Perfect attendance record for over 10 consecutive years prior to the pandemic. Conscientious and take great pride in my work - have excelled in all positions, past and present.
• Dedication to the company's mission and success illustrated by routinely assisting other trains with mechanical problems and providing offers to assist and sound counsel to dispatchers on how to best expedite resumption of normal operations when problems occurred.
• Earned CSX Service Star award twice for delivering outstanding customer service. Top-of-class in both Conductor and Locomotive Engineer training classes.