David L. Starling, president and chief executive officer of Kansas City Southern, has been named 2012 Railroader of the Year by railroad industry trade journal Railway Age.

"Kansas City Southern is a remarkable success story, and Dave Starling is the man who leads the team that's making it happen," said Railway Age editor-in-chief William C. Vantuono. "The growth of KCS's International Intermodal Corridor, which links the United States with Mexico, is one of several major accomplishments that have taken place under his watch. In 2011, KCS achieved record carloadings and revenues. Revenues in last year's third quarter were 24% higher than in 2010, exceeding pre-recession levels. The railroad has been able to absorb additional volume with a stable workforce--a key indicator of productivity. Starling is also leading development of the next major Pacific coast port--Lazaro Cárdenas, Mexico, which is now the fastest-growing major container port in North America. Volume and revenue at the port are up 31% and 35%, respectively. KCS is clearly in a growth mode."

"Dave Starling follows in the footsteps of Mike Haverty, Railway Age's 2001 Railroader of the Year," added Vantuono. "Haverty and KCS in the mid-1990s won the concession to privatize and operate the busiest segment of Ferrocarilles Nacionales de Mexico (Mexican National Railways)--the key trunk line linking the U.S. border at Laredo, Tex., with Mexico City. Combined with KCS's U.S. operations and strategic alliances with other Class I carriers, Haverty envisioned a north-south freight railroad rich with cross-border intermodal traffic and manufactured parts and products. Today, under Dave Starling's leadership, Haverty's vision is coming to fruition. There has been rapid growth in U.S.-Mexico cross-border intermodal traffic. As of late 2011, volumes and revenue for the year were up an astounding 55% and 71%, respectively."

"This is a great moment for Kansas City Southern and I'm very pleased that our railroad is being recognized," said Starling. "I know it's the Railroader of the Year, but I'm only one person. It's really Kansas City Southern's employees in the U.S. and Mexico, working together, who have made this recognition possible. I am proud of what the team has accomplished to provide best-in-class service to our customers and value to our shareholders."

Dave Starling is Railway Age's 49th Railroader of the Year. Modern Railroads magazine founded the award, one of the most prestigious in the railroad industry, in 1964 as the "Man of the Year." Railway Age acquired Modern Railroads in 1991 and has presented the award annually since then. Starling will be honored on March 13, 2012, at Chicago's Union League Club. Railway Age tells the story of Dave Starling and the organization he leads at Kansas City Southern with a cover story in the magazine's January 2012 issue, which will also be available online at www.railwayage.com.

About Kansas City Southern

Headquartered in Kansas City, Mo., Kansas City Southern (KCS) (NYSE: KSU) is a transportation holding company that has railroad investments in the U.S., Mexico and Panama. Its primary U.S. holding is The Kansas City Southern Railway Company, serving the central and south central U.S. Its international holdings include Kansas City Southern de Mexico, S.A. de C.V., serving northeastern and central Mexico and the port cities of Lázaro Cárdenas, Tampico and Veracruz, and a 50 percent interest in Panama Canal Railway Company, providing ocean-to-ocean freight and passenger service along the Panama Canal. KCS' North American rail holdings and strategic alliances are primary components of a NAFTA Railway system, linking the commercial and industrial centers of the U.S., Mexico and Canada.

About Railway Age

Railway Age (www.railwayage.com) is a monthly trade magazine circulated at the management levels of North American freight and passenger railroads. Founded in Chicago, Ill., in 1856, it is the transportation industry's longest-running trade publication. Railway Age is published by the Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corp., New York, N.Y.

Supplemental information:

Railroader of the Year recipients under Modern Railroads:
1964: D. W. Brosnan, Southern Railway System
1965: Stuart T. Saunders, Pennsylvania Railroad Co.
1966: Stuart T. Saunders, Pennsylvania Railroad Co.
1967: Louis W. Menk, Northern Pacific Railway
1968: William B. Johnson, Illinois Central Railroad
1969: John W. Barriger, Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad
1970: John S. Reed, Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway
1971: Jervis Langdon, Jr., Penn Central Transportation Co.
1972: Charles Luna, United Transportation Union
1973: James B. Germany, Southern Pacific Transportation Co.
1974: L. Stanley Crane, Southern Railway System
1975: Frank E. Barnett, Union Pacific Railroad
1976: Dr. William J. Harris, Jr., Association of American Railroads
1977: Edward G. Jordan, Conrail
1978: Robert M. Brown, Union Pacific Railroad
1979: Theodore C. Lutz, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority
1980: John G. German, Missouri Pacific Railroad Co.
1981: Lawrence Cena, Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway
1982: A. Paul Funkhouser, Family Lines Rail System
1983: L. Stanley Crane, Conrail
1984: Hays T. Watkins, CSX Corp.
1985: John L. Cann, Canadian National
1986: Raymond C. Burton, Jr., Trailer Train Co.
1987: Willis B. Kyle, Kyle Railways
1988: Darius W. Gaskins, Jr., Burlington Northern
1989: W. Graham Claytor, Jr., Amtrak
1990: Arnold B. McKinnon, Norfolk Southern
1991: Mike Walsh, Union Pacific Railroad

Recipients under Railway Age:
1992: William H. Dempsey, Association of American Railroads
1993: Raymond C. Burton, Jr., TTX Co.
1994: L. S. "Jake" Jacobson, Copper Basin Railway
1995: Edwin Moyers, Southern Pacific Transportation Co.
1996: Robert D. Krebs, AT&SF, and Gerald Grinstein, Burlington Northern
1997: Paul M. Tellier, Canadian National
1998: David R. Goode, Norfolk Southern
1999: Edward A. Burkhardt, Wisconsin Central Transportation Co.
2000: The Railroad Worker (award presented as "Railroader of the Century" for 2000)
2001: Michael R. Haverty, Kansas City Southern
2002: E. Hunter Harrison, Canadian National/Illinois Central
2003: Richard K. Davidson, Union Pacific Railroad
2004: Robert J. Ritchie, Canadian Pacific Railway
2005: David R. Goode, Norfolk Southern
2006: Richard F. Timmons, American Short Line & Regional Railroad Association
2007: William E. Wimmer, Union Pacific Railroad
2008: Stephen C. Tobias, Norfolk Southern
2009: Michael J. Ward, CSX
2010: Matthew K. Rose, BNSF
2011: Wick Moorman, Norfolk Southern
2012: David L. Starling, Kansas City Southern

Kansas City Southern
C. Doniele Carlson, 816-983-1372
dcarlson@kcsouthern.com
or
Railway Age
William C. Vantuono, 212-620-7240
Editor-in-Chief
wvantuono@sbpub.com