STB to hold November hearing on grain transportation

STB to hold November hearing on grain transportation    The Surface Transportation Board said Wednesday it will hold a public hearing Nov. 2 to examine issues related to the transportation of grain by railroad.
   The hearing follows a recent Government Accountability Office report on rates, competition, and capacity issues in the American rail freight industry.
   'Although GAO reported that changes that have occurred in the rail industry since the Staggers Rail Act of 1980 are widely viewed as positive — with a healthier industry generally charging lower rates — it stated that grain rates have diverged from industry trends,' the transportation agency said. 'The STB’s Nov. 2 hearing will serve as a forum for interested    persons to provide views and information about the market conditions that led to GAO’s observations, and about grain transportation markets in general.'
   The hearing will begin at 10 a.m. in Room 760, the STB’s hearing room, on the 7th Floor of the agency’s headquarters in the Mercury Building, 1925 K Street, N.W., Washington.