The effect of the counterion salt sodium salicylate (NaSal) on the transient rheological properties of a drag-reducing surfactant system tris (2-hydroxyethyl) tallowalkyl ammonium acetate (TThA) has been studied with both rheometric and rheo-optical methods. Three types of transient. behavior for N-1 and viscosity were identified in 5 mM TTAA solutions depending on the counterion concentration: induction and growth (below equimolar concentration); overshoot and growth (above equimolar concentration); and over-shoot then plateau (al high concentrations of MaSal). The transient flow birefringence and orientation angle show trends similar to chose of the viscosity and N-1. The second type of transient behavior suggests a two-stage alignment and shear thickening process. The SIS buildup lime from the quiescent state, the rebuilding time after a strong preshear, and the relaxation time were also obtained from N-1 measurements, and show a maximum around equimolar conditions. The initial N-1 and viscosity immediately after the flow startup, on the other hand, show a maximum around a ratio of 2.5 eo 3 NaSal/TTAA. For solutions with a NaSal concentration in the ratio 1.5 to 3, the steady state values of N-1 and viscosity do not show much variation with NaSal concentration over the shear rate range covered, however. The effect of an addition of sodium chloride (NaCl) to an equimolar NaSal/TTAA solution on the characteristic times and steady state values was also quantified. These rheological results provide us with tools to determine the optimal concentration ratio for practical drag reduction applications.