WATCHING WASHINGTON, RAILWAY AGE MAY 2022 ISSUE: Have you tried pushing on a string? Therein lies a challenge facing the Surface Transportation Board (STB), which regulates rates and practices of freight railroads.
Whatever was CSX CEO James M. Foote thinking when he testified before the STB’s “Urgent Issues in Freight Rail Service” hearing April 26? His display of disdain for the agency—in particular, White House-nominated and Senate-confirmed STB member Robert A. Primus—was evident in mannerisms and sarcastic responses.
Following the Surface Transportation Board’s April 26-27 ““Urgent Issues in Freight Rail Service,” the Association of American Railroads has issued a statement saying that the Class I’s that testified “made clear to the STB and their customers they are committed to delivering the safe and reliable service shippers deserve and expect.”
Editor’s Note: Allegations that railroads place too great an emphasis on lowering the operating ratio dominated the Surface Transportation Board’s two-day hearing April 26-27, “Urgent Issues in Freight Rail Service.” To assist
The Surface Transportation Board on April 29 issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), URCS Data Reporting (Docket No. EP 769), “to codify a longstanding voluntary practice of data reporting by the Class I carriers,” which through the Association of American Railroads (AAR) have annually reported tare weight and L&D (loss and damage) data for use in the Board’s Uniform Railroad Costing System (URCS).
The Surface Transportation Board (STB) is calling on merger partners Canadian Pacific (CP) and Kansas City Southern (KCS) to resubmit by May 27 traffic density data that will be used in analyzing the environmental and transportation impacts of their combination.
Canadian Pacific’s (CP) first-quarter 2022 results—including revenues that fell 6% and a reported operating ratio that deteriorated by 1,070 basis points from first-quarter 2021—“reflected the impact of last year’s drought on Canadian grain volumes, harsh winter operating conditions and the effects of a work stoppage,” President and CEO Keith Creel said.
“I am confident that our efforts to improve our service through accelerated hiring and refinements to our operating plan will provide a platform for long-term growth and efficiency for both our customers and shareholders,” Norfolk Southern (NS) President Alan H. Shaw said during a first-quarter 2022 earnings announcement on April 27.
Editor’s Note: The Surface Transportation Board is conducting an in-person hearing April 26-27 (EP 770, Urgent Issues in Freight Rail Service) with the CEOs of the “Big Four” Class I railroads—BNSF, CSX, Norfolk
The Surface Transportation Board (STB) is seeking comments by May 23 on a proposal to amend its emergency service regulations “to provide relief for shippers in situations that require immediate relief.”