STB asks railroads for plans to address peak season surge

STB asks railroads for plans to address peak season surge    U.S. Surface Transportation Board Chairman Roger Nober has asked each of the seven largest railroads, as well as the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association, to report within 30 days on their plans to meet the expected increase in demand during the upcoming peak shipping season.
   Nober made a similar request last year when railroad service had severely deteriorated even before the flood of imports for the heavy fall shipping season and shippers worried if they would be able to get their products to market. Nober said monitoring operational and investment plans for relieving congestion last year may have spurred the railroads to find solutions more quickly.
   Nober asked the railroads to submit plans, which will be made public, in the following areas:
   * Steps each railroad is taking to ascertain shipper demand and prepare for the fall peak season.
   * Each railroad’s performance goals for at least the next 120 days and plans to achieve them.
   * Capital plans for increasing capacity in 2005 — many railroads have already busy hiring more rail workers, acquiring locomotives and laying track.
   * Critical infrastructure needs related to capacity and timetables for completing them.
   * How railroads plan to communicate their service strategies to their customers.