FreightWaves chatted with former STB Chairman Dan Elliott on the history of the board’s relationship with reciprocal switching and why the board should still review it today.
The panel on rail consolidations also addressed different approaches to creating competition on monopoly networks.
Canadian Pacific and CSX want to show federal regulators and the broader public that they have widespread support for their proposed acquisitions.
Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern submit a plan to regulators detailing how they will merge their operations.
The two eastern U.S. railroads want the Surface Transportation Board to maintain its identity as an independent arbitrator as it decides whether to permit Amtrak to restore Gulf Coast service between Mobile, Alabama, and New Orleans.
Several rail shippers had asked the Surface Transportation Board to temporarily suspend a proceeding on a voluntary arbitration program for small rate disputes, but the board denied that request.
The end of 2021 brings the confirmation of a Surface Transportation Board member and approvals of short line requests.
The eastern U.S. railroad is aggressively courting new employees as well as seeking to retain current ones to improve traffic flow and reduce delays.
Economist Steve Pociask opines on why he thinks the Surface Transportation Board should tread carefully when deciding how to proceed with the issue of reciprocal switching.
The Surface Transportation Board has adopted a final rule that addresses temporary trackage rights in situations in which one rail carrier needs access to another carrier’s track due to an emergency.
Surface Transportation Board Chairman Marty Oberman is asking Norfolk Southern why service has deteriorated, according to shippers — and what the railroad plans to do about it.
Two agencies in Mexico have given their approval of the proposed merger between Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern.
The STB is allowing the merger application of Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern to proceed as is, rejecting Union Pacific’s concerns over the application’s completeness.
The railroad says CP’s and KCS’ traffic diversion analysis is incomplete, and so the board should compel CP and KCS to revise its merger application.
The Surface Transportation Board is advancing two rulemakings on small rate disputes concurrently to determine how best to address such disputes. The railroads prefer one rulemaking while shippers prefer another.
The board has said it plans to seek input on the environmental impacts of the CP-KCS merger; CSX’s planned acquisition of Pan Am Railways; Amtrak’s plan to restore its Gulf Coast service; and reciprocal switching.
CSX defended its service record and its responsiveness to customer concerns to the Surface Transportation Board, which had sent CSX a letter in October saying that the board received complaints over the railroad’s recent performance.
CSX and Norfolk Southern are asking the Surface Transportation Board to deny Amtrak’s request to restore U.S. Gulf Coast service between Mobile, Alabama, and New Orleans unless the passenger railroad agrees to pay for capital improvements to facilitate rail moves.
STB has allowed agri-food shipper Sanimax to proceed in its complaint against Union Pacific over service issues.
The proposed schedule will provide room for rebuttals and responses, STB said.
Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern submit a joint application before the Surface Transportation Board asking to consolidate the two railroads while CN adds a rail and technology expert to its board.
The board affirms its previous approval of Canadian Pacific’s voting trust application.
Industry observers grapple with the complexities of implementing reciprocal switching on U.S. rail networks.
2022 could be a busy year for the Surface Transportation Board if it decides to tackle a number of long-standing, hot-button issues.
U.S. agribusiness exporters claim they are poised to lose 22% of sales due to massive increases in container shipping rates.
Kansas City Southern shareholders pushed back a vote on whether to approve CN’s merger agreement to Sept. 24.
The agency is seeking comments from freight railroads on whether it should collect data pertaining to first- and last-mile movements.
Stakeholders and observers such as Amtrak, Canadian Pacific and the Vermont Department of Transportation want the Surface Transportation Board to consider placing conditions that would bolster both competitive access and passenger rail service.
Kansas City Southern shareholders must decide whether to continue to pursue merger plans with CN or go with Canadian Pacific.
The Surface Transportation Board rejected CN’s application to establish a voting trust, which would be used as part of the process to acquire Kansas City Southern.
As fall harvest nears, grain shippers and freight railroads are taking steps to ensure network fluidity for export-bound grain trains in and out of the Pacific Northwest.
Both Canada and the U.S. have provisions that allow for reciprocal switching, or interswitching. But rail shippers’ ability to participate in the program differs in the two countries.
The Association of American Railroads responds to regulator’s inquiry about supply chain congestion, while GoRail advocates for regulation supporting freight rail industry growth.
AskWaves looks at the regulatory might of this small, independent federal agency.
Kansas City Southern declined Canadian Pacific’s revised bid, opting to stick with CN. But a shareholder vote to approve the CN-KCS merger agreement could be held off if the Surface Transportation Board doesn’t issue its decision on CN’s voting trust by Tuesday.
The CEOs of five Class I railroads tell the Surface Transportation Board that the root causes of the congestion facing rail intermodal terminals are beyond the railroads’ control.
The Surface Transportation Board will review Amtrak’s request to restore Gulf Coast service, dismissing calls by CSX and Norfolk Southern, whose networks will be affected by the service restoration, to reject the request.
Four shipper associations have asked the Surface Transportation Board to see if demurrage charges can be applied to privately owned railcars to improve the flow of railcars through the network.
The Surface Transportation Board has accepted CSX’s revised application to acquire Pan Am Railways, allowing the acquisition proceedings to continue.
SMART-TD must negotiate with Class I railroads on train crew size; Rail Customer Coalition calls on STB to take up reciprocal switching; ASLRRA praises progress on infrastructure bill; and Canadian Pacific urges KCS shareholders to vote against the proposed CN-KCS merger.
Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., doesn’t want federal regulators to approve a voting trust that Canadian railway CN would establish as part of the process to acquire Kansas City Southern.
Employment levels in June for the U.S. operations of the Class I railroads held steady from May, although U.S. rail volumes grew by one-fifth over the same period.
STB Chairman Marty Oberman has sent letters to all the Class I railroads asking them how the railroads are applying storage fees at key container terminals while the supply chain is congested.
Supply chain bottlenecks are raising red flags for inflation down the road.
Amtrak wants federal regulators to expedite a request to reestablish passenger rail service between Mobile and New Orleans. But CSX and Norfolk Southern say, not so fast.
President Joe Biden’s order last week calls upon the Surface Transportation Board to examine hot topics among rail shippers, including reciprocal switching. The challenge will be balancing the wants and needs of shippers and the freight railroads.
CSX hopes an expanded application containing a more in-depth market analysis will persuade the Surface Transportation Board to approve CSX’s request to acquire Pan Am.
Canadian Pacific and CN note the end of the public comment period for CN’s proposed voting trust, which would be used to acquire Kansas City Southern. But in order for regulators to review the voting trust application, the Surface Transportation Board may need to clarify further the parameters for gauging whether a rail merger is in the public interest, some stakeholders say.
Monday is the last day that stakeholders can express their views to the Surface Transportation Board over CN’s proposed voting trust that will be used to acquire KCS. Canadian Pacific says it has the support of North Dakota congressional leaders, while CN touts support from Gulf Coast and southern Plains leaders.
Employment levels at the U.S. operations of Class I railroads were flat to higher from April to May. But year-over-year totals show a nearly 3% decline. Meanwhile, the Class I railroads say they’re actively hiring and training in 2021.
CN and Canadian Pacific are rounding up support for their respective plans to acquire Kansas City Southern. Regulators are accepting public comments on CN’s voting trust through next Monday. CN would use the voting trust as part of the process to acquire KCS.
Ocean carriers and Class I railroads both agree that chassis shortages are contributing to volume congestion. But solutions to relieve the congestion rely on multiple supply chain stakeholders, say the railroads.
CN continues to insist that it has widespread support for its plans to acquire Kansas City Southern. That support includes the voting trust proposal that CN would use as part of the merger process.
The Surface Transportation Board is accepting public comments on CN’s and Kansas City Southern’s voting trust proposal. KCS asserts its financial strength while Canadian Pacific circulates a union’s negative feedback on the CN-KCS merger.
Former Surface Transportation Board Vice Chairman William Clyburn Jr. recommends that STB approve the voting trust proposed by CN and Kansas City Southern.
The American Chemistry Council wants the Surface Transportation Board to look into whether operational changes and cost cutting exacerbated the rail service issues that chemicals shippers have been having in the first half of this year.
A trio of shippers groups, CN, Kansas City Southern and Canadian Pacific offer their takes on whether the voting trust associated with the proposed CN-KCS merger is or isn’t in the public interest.
The rail regulatory body sent several letters to Class I railroad heads last week, asking them to provide plans on how they expect to handle workforce and equipment in light of broader supply chain disruptions and anticipated service demand post-pandemic.
President Joe Biden’s regulatory policy shift has wide-ranging implications for shippers and carriers.
The American Chemistry Council, which represents chemicals shippers, wants the Surface Transportation Board to scrutinize proposed Class I rail mergers to ensure that shippers don’t encounter reduced offerings.
CSX needs more data in its market analysis, the Surface Transportation Board said. CSX plans to resubmit its application.
To sweeten the voting trust application before regulators, CN and Kansas City Southern are offering to divest 70 miles of a KCS line in an area of Louisiana where both railroads have competing lines in order to create an “end-to-end” network.
April employment levels at the U.S. operations of the Class I railroads were up 0.42% from March but down 7% year-over-year.
This AskWaves article explains what Class I, Class II and Class III railroads are and why they exist.
Kansas City Southern has opted for CN’s merger offer. It is terminating an existing merger agreement it has with Canadian Pacific.
Four rail labor groups have banded together to warn regulators about potential post-merger efforts to trim labor costs, while investment banking firm Cowen says regulators’ denial of CN’s voting trust signals that CN will have to make a strong case for its proposed merger.
Canadian Pacific wants Kansas City Southern to reject CN’s competing merger offer. The railway also said it won’t engage in a bidding war.
Following the Surface Transportation Board’s decision on Monday regarding CN’s proposed merger with Kansas City Southern, both CN and Canadian Pacific remained confident that each is the better suitor for KCS.
The Surface Transportation Board has decided that it would review a proposed merger between CN and Kansas City Southern under newer, stricter merger rules. The board also denied for now CN’s request to form a voting trust, saying CN’s application is incomplete.
CN revised its bid to acquire KCS; CP said it will not seek to counterbid.
The U.S. Department of Transportation wants the Surface Transportation Board to take up Amtrak’s request asking to establish passenger service between Mobile and New Orleans.
Rivals Canadian Pacific and CN separately submit more statements of support to the Surface Transportation Board in a bid to show which Canadian railway is best suited to merge with Kansas City Southern.
The Surface Transportation Board has approved the voting trust that Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern plan to make as part of the merger process between the two companies.
Amtrak must follow new on-time performance metrics starting July 1. Democratic congressional leaders and the Surface Transportation Board are looking at different ways to help Amtrak reach that goal. Amtrak and the freight railroads share track in certain U.S. regions.
CN and Canadian Pacific continue to campaign for the hearts and votes of Kansas City Southern stakeholders and the Surface Transportation Board.
The Biden administration has nominated Karen Hedlund to serve on the Surface Transportation Board.
The Canadian railway CN and Kansas City Southern have agreed to talk about CN’s acquisition bid. Canadian Pacific, which has a competing offer, acknowledges the meeting. CN also submits letters of support from stakeholders to regulators.
The Surface Transportation Board has determined that a waiver that exempted Kansas City Southern from post-2001 merger rules governing rail mergers applies in the proposed merger between KCS and Canadian Pacific.
With a Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern merger, grain shippers in the Dakotas will have a real single-line option to reach their end markets rather than having to rely solely on UP or BNSF, says former U.S. Sen. Byron Dorgan.
The Surface Transportation Board will need to scrutinize a proposed merger between Kansas City Southern and either Canadian Pacific or CN to ensure it doesn’t hurt the operations of competing railroads, Union Pacific’s head said on the company’s first-quarter earnings call.
For now, Canadian Pacific is not planning to take part in a bidding war with rival CN to acquire Kansas City Southern, saying that its offer is more likely to meet regulators’ litmus test for mergers.
Canadian Pacific and CN both filed letters to the Surface Transportation Board asking the panel to consider the merits of their competing requests to acquire Kansas City Southern.
The U.S. Department of Justice raised concerns about how Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern are using a voting trust to facilitate their proposed merger. The two railroads respond.
Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern provided the Surface Transportation Board 75 more letters explaining why their proposed merger should be approved.
The Surface Transportation Board’s final rule on what information should be included in a demurrage billing statement provides transparency and accountability in a process shippers sometimes see as opaque.
The Surface Transportation Board defines what billing information should be included in demurrage invoices to rail users as a means to provide more transparency.
Canadian Pacific has submitted a 531-page filing to the Surface Transportation Board that includes letters from 259 entities supporting the proposed acquisition of Kansas City Southern.
CSX must again file its plans to acquire New England short line Pan Am Railways as a “significant” transaction.
Canadian Pacific wants to acquire Kansas City Southern. Here are five thoughts from Wall Street transportation analysts about the transaction.
STB Chair Marty Oberman shares the board’s views on two proposed acquisitions: CSX’s acquisition of New England short line Pan Am Railways and Canadian Pacific’s merger with Kansas City Southern.
Amtrak wants to establish passenger rail service between Mobile, Alabama, and New Orleans, but CSX, Norfolk Southern and the Port of Mobile have some reservations. Amtrak has filed a petition with the Surface Transportation Board to turn its plan into fruition.
Transportation Technology Center Inc. is undergoing a management change that would enable the group to expand work to multiple sites, while the Surface Transportation Board appoints two short line railroad representatives to the Railroad-Shipper Transportation Advisory Council. Also, a Manitoba transload facility at the U.S.-Canadian border seeks customers.
Eastern U.S. railroad CSX (NASDAQ: CSX) has started the regulatory process to acquire New England short line operator Pan Am Railways in a move that CSX hopes will strengthen its […]
U.S. Class I rail headcount totaled 113,461 employees in January.
A change in political direction – and ongoing concerns – greet 10 Biden picks who will deal with freight issues.
Marty Oberman has been appointed to serve as the chairman of the Surface Transportation Board.
U.S. operations of the Class I railroads employed fewer employees in 2020 than in any year since at least 2012. Headcount was 14% lower than in 2019.
Michelle Schultz’s appointment brings the board to five members, the full complement prescribed by federal law.
Robert Primus gets confirmed as the newest member of the Surface Transportation Board while the Intermodal Association of North America names Barbara Melvin as its new board member.
Rail shippers discuss what issues they would like to see addressed in 2021. Among them: further action by the Surface Transportation Board and Congress on ensuring rail competition and adequate rail service.
