From today's Railway Age:



Amtrak President and Chief Executive Officer Alex Kummant resigned Nov. 14
after serving two years heading the National Railroad Passenger Corp., as
Amtrak is formally known. Amtrak Chief Operating Officer William Crosbie
will succeed Kummant on an interim basis, likely to last until
President-elect Barack Obama's administration makes its mark on the Amtrak
board of directors early in 2009. The board, in turn, will select a new CEO.

A source close to the Amtrak board, who asked not to be identified,
speculated that Kummant "was not hands-on. He didn't have a handle on
finances or operations. His personality was often confrontational."

Kummant was named Amtrak president in September 2006, filling the top slot
left vacant by the departure of David Gunn 10 months earlier.

"On behalf of the entire Board, I'd like to thank Alex for his leadership
over the past two years," said board chairwoman Donna McLean. "During the
past two years, the company experienced exciting economic times, strong
ridership and revenue growth, solid profit and loss performance, and the
advancement of the Amtrak brand overall. He also successfully oversaw the
completion of labor agreements with all of the unions representing Amtrak's
employees. We are grateful to Alex for his contributions to the company."



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