OTTAWA - Daniel Lafrenière, Manager, Radio Spectrum at the Railway Association of Canada, has been named to head the Radio Advisory Board of Canada (RABC).

“It’s the first time in nearly 30 years that someone from the rail business assumes the presidency of the RABC,” said Lafrenière. “I intend to bring more participation from rail members to the various working groups of the RABC and also raise the awareness that the Canada’s rail businesses are major players in spectrum management.”

With 22 years of spectrum management experience, Lafrenière develops and implements radiofrequency plans and policies for the Canadian railway industry. He began his career as a radio inspector in the Montreal-based department of Communication, then in Ottawa as an analyst for Industry Canada and as a private consultant. He studied electrical engineering at Teccart institute in Montreal and holds a BA in Business Administration from Université du Québec en Outaouais.

The RABC is an association of associations which represents most sectors of the radio communication business in Canada, including manufacturers, wireless carriers and service providers, network operators, broadcasters, transportation, public safety and national security radio network operators and users. It provides the Government of Canada with broadly based, unbiased and technically expert advice regarding the management and use of the radio frequency spectrum in Canada.

About the Railway Association of Canada

The Railway Association of Canada represents some 50 freight, tourist, commuter and intercity Canadian railways, their more than 35,000 employees, and over 45 associate suppliers and partners. Rail moves more than 70 million passengers and 75 per cent of our nation’s goods annually in an environmentally sustainable manner, generating only three per cent of the transport sector’s greenhouse gas emissions. Since 2000, the RAC manages the radio spectrum for the whole rail industry as the result of a unique public-private partnership with Industry Canada.