Reading & Northern Railroad (RBMN) has promoted Jonathan Barket to vice president communications and signals and Matthew Collins to assistant vice president communications and signals. Barket will report to Tyler Glass, vice president operations. Collins will report to Barket.
Barket joined RBMN in 2003 as a signal assistant within the communications and signal department. He was named manager communications and signals in 2007 and assistant vice president communications and signals in 2010. During that time, the communications and signals department expanded from three to nine employees and added more than 100 additional locations.
Barket continues working with his Reading & Northern team members to help design, engineer, and install an aggressive plan to re-signal more than 100 miles. Additionally, he continues to update safety and technology at crossings and signal locations throughout the railroad’s system and oversees the communication system from the dispatching center, to radio bases, to handheld radios.
Collins joined RBMN in 2008 as a signal maintainer on the Lehigh Division and in 2015 was named signal communications manager. In 2018, he was appointed director of communications and signals in recognition of his work to improve and build out the signal and communications systems across the railroad. During his tenure with RBMN, he has overseen the construction of 10 interlockings and 23 signal and crossing locations.
Before joining Reading & Northern, Collins served three and a half years in the United States Army, reaching the rank of Sergeant. He earned a degree in computer information systems at Luzerne County Community College.
“Both individuals have shown tremendous growth since joining our organization. They continue to innovate and blend the newest technology into our systems in order to provide a safer and more efficient system for our operations as well as the public. The list of projects is never ending, and they have a fine team to lead as we move forward in this growing company,” said Reading & Northern President Wayne Michel.
Headquartered in Port Clinton, Pa., RBMN is a privately held railroad company that serves more than 70 customers in nine eastern Pennsylvania counties.