Venturing out: Laurello launches new network aimed at railroading's future
6/11/2026
By Julie Sneider
For the past two decades, fourth-generation railroader Linda Laurello has been on the ground working for a railroad construction and equipment rental company, soaking up every detail of the business and industry that she can.
During her years with Delta Railroad Services, which her great-grandfather Cosmo Anthony Laurello founded in 1957, she rose through the ranks, starting with office administrative and accounting duties, then moving up to project management and head of contracts before advancing to chief financial officer, chief operations officer, and finally to CEO and chairman.
Now, the 42-year-old mother of three is following the Laurello family’s entrepreneurial spirit by launching her own venture: Next Generation Rail Network, which she describes as an awareness initiative designed to promote the rail industry.
Her hope is that by elevating the public’s awareness of the industry, she can help railroads, rail affiliated businesses and transit agencies to be better positioned to compete for future workers and leaders who’ll be experienced in the kind of technology that can propel railroading forward.
“My family is very entrepreneurial and I’m constantly thinking about what else I can do,” says Laurello, who Progressive Railroading honored earlier this year as a “Women of Influence in Rail.”
Next Generation Rail Network kicks off this month with a podcast series focusing on women who’ve made a career in railroading. The “Women in Rail Podcast” will feature Laurello’s interviews with female leaders at freight and passenger railroads, transit agencies and rail-sector businesses.
The “Women in Rail Podcast” hosted by Linda Laurello will feature interviews with women leaders at freight and passenger railroads, transit agencies and rail-sector businesses.Linda LaurelloThe first podcast will spotlight Laurello’s conversation with Janice Thomas, chief of staff and deputy executive director of external affairs at Metra, Chicago’s commuter railroad.
Future topics include the state of rail technology, safety and efficiency; navigating the rail career ladder; how to stay competitive and resilient in an evolving field; and advice on passing the torch to the next generation of rail builders.
Laurello is concentrating the podcast on women in rail for a couple of reasons: “One, because I am a woman in rail,” she says; and two, because she wants to help raise women’s awareness of railroading at a time when women still make up a small percentage of the industry’s workforce.
In her own case, Laurello would never have considered working for the family’s rail business had her grandfather not brought it to her attention.
“My first thought right out of college was to run a winery because our family also has a winery [Laurello Vineyards in Geneva, Ohio],” she says. “I did that for a little bit, but it didn’t empower me to do what I wanted to do on a greater scale. So, my grandfather — he was my mentor, the best person I’ve met in my life — he said, ‘Why don’t you work with me? I will teach you everything you want to know. We can be a great team.’”
With a what-do-I-have-to-lose attitude, she jumped in to learn all aspects of the rail construction business.
“It’s still hard work today, but it was even harder for me back then,” she says. “I remember leaving work sometimes and being so tired of having to show every day that I can actually do the work.”
For a long time, she was the only woman in meetings with clients and businesspeople she interacted with in rail.
“Even now, sometimes I enter a room and people think, ‘Oh, is she here to take notes?’” Laurello says. “But as soon as I open my mouth and they realize I know what I’m talking about, it flips and they want to work together. I’ve had a lot of male mentors and others who’ve helped me in this industry.”
And even though the podcast features long-form interviews (20 to 45 minutes each) with female railroaders, the lessons learned and perspectives presented can be just as useful to men, Laurello believes.
“The podcast is ‘Women in Rail,’ but the Next Generation Rail Network really is an effort to bring awareness and visibility to the industry and to empower the next generation of rail innovators,” she explains.
And while she was named chairman of Delta Railroad Services just earlier this year, she says she has stepped back entirely from her commitment there to get Next Generation Rail Network off the ground. Still, she maintains regular contact with Delta, which was acquired by Rome-based Salcef Group in 2020. Some of her family members, including her dad Larry Laurello, who she succeeded as Delta’s CEO in 2024, remain involved in the business, she says.
But now is the right time to devote all her energy to the Next Generation Rail Network, she believes. She now has the time, dedication and enthusiasm to take on this next role.
“We’re in an era where it’s necessary to be loud and explain to the nation that the rail industry is alive and well, and it's definitely an option for the next generation,” she says. “There’s that old thinking out there that if you don’t know someone in the rail industry or you weren’t born into it, there’s no opportunity to join. I believe right now is the perfect opportunity to change that story.”
As older generations of experienced railroaders look to retire, it’s more important than ever to find younger generations to pass that knowledge on to, she says.
“They [Gen Z] are so different from my generation and how do we navigate that? Technology and social media and all these things are so big for them and I don’t think the rail industry has caught up to all that yet,” she says.
Besides serving as a vehicle for spreading the word to future railroaders, Laurello believes the new network can generate innovative ideas for improving rail safety, predictive maintenance, efficiency and productivity — including through the use of AI.
For now, Laurello is self-funding the network’s startup and podcast series. Looking ahead, she hopes to attract sponsorships and collaborations for its future activities, projects and undertakings. She’s also open to consulting work. Over time, she hopes to develop connections between the network and the various rail trade associations; in her roles at Delta, she’s been a member of the League of Railway Women and the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association.
"I’m very excited to be starting this new adventure,” she says. “Although it was very hard for me to step away from Delta Railroad, I just felt like my place right now needs to be doing this by myself on a greater scale than what I could do if I stayed.”
Julie Sneider, who retired April 1 as senior editor of Progressive Railroading, is a Wisconsin-based freelance writer.