STB Names Former BNSF Executive Economics Director, Adds Senior Adviser

The Surface Transportation Board has appointed Marty Schlenker as director of its Office of Economics and Terrence McDermott as senior adviser to Chairman Patrick Fuchs.

The appointments add two longtime railroad and transportation industry executives to the agency as it manages major matters involving rail competition, rates, service and mergers. Fuchs announced the moves Sept. 24, saying Schlenker’s appointment was made with the approval of the full board.

Both officials had been working at the STB in temporary transition roles before receiving permanent appointments.

Schlenker will lead the Office of Economics, the agency unit responsible for providing economic analysis used in STB decisions. That work supports cases involving railroad rate disputes, service and competition issues, and transactions that require the board to examine potential effects on rail markets and shippers.

The economics office’s work is particularly important as the STB considers Union Pacific’s proposed acquisition of Norfolk Southern. The agency adopted a procedural schedule in August for reviewing the revised major-merger application. In late September, the board rejected motions from BNSF and CSX seeking summary denial of the proposal.

The merger review is one of several significant matters before the five-member agency. The STB’s decisions can influence how railroads compete, how shippers access transportation service and how disputes over rates and operating conditions are evaluated. Those issues can also affect freight moving through intermodal networks, including shipments that are transferred between rail and trucks.

Schlenker brings 17 years of experience at BNSF Railway to the position. He ultimately became assistant vice president of technology services at the railroad. After leaving BNSF, he served as head of analytics and applications for Parallel Systems, a company developing autonomous railcar technology.

Schlenker is a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His background in railroad operations, technology and analytics will now be applied to the economic analysis supporting the board’s regulatory work.

McDermott will advise Fuchs, who has chaired the STB since January 2025. He spent more than a decade at commodity trader Bunge, where he served as director of supply chain for North American rail. He also worked for more than 10 years at Ferromex, serving as chief marketing officer and vice president of sales and marketing.

That experience includes work on rail transportation from both the shipper and railroad sides. Bunge is a major commodity company with significant transportation needs, while Ferromex operates one of Mexico’s largest rail networks. McDermott’s new role will place that industry experience within the chairman’s office.

In a statement, the STB said the appointments are intended to strengthen the agency’s expert staff and support its ongoing reform efforts. The board did not provide additional details about specific reform initiatives tied to the appointments.

For trucking companies and professional drivers, the agency’s rail decisions matter most where freight moves across modes. Intermodal containers may travel by truck for pickup and delivery while spending much of the long-haul journey on rail. Changes in rail competition, service reliability, terminal activity or shipper access can therefore influence how freight is routed and where trucking capacity is needed.

The STB’s review of the Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern proposal will remain a central matter for the agency. The board’s procedural schedule establishes the framework for evaluating the revised application, while the rejection of BNSF’s and CSX’s motions allows the review to continue under that process.

With Schlenker leading the economics office and McDermott advising Fuchs, the agency has filled two senior positions with officials who have experience in railroad technology, supply chains, commercial operations and shipper transportation needs.