Amtrak and other stakeholders are asking the Surface Transportation Board to hold off on a November hearing on Amtrak’s request to restore Gulf Coast service because of a potential settlement.
Recent filings to the board from various parties focus on wo bears the burden to show if or how Amtrak service between Mobile, Alabama, and New Orleans would affect freight operations.
The Surface Transportation Board will conduct a three-day hearing in late September to find out from Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern directly about issues related to the railways’ proposed merger.
The Surface Transportation Board has granted Amtrak’s request to access limited confidential data from CSX and Norfolk Southern as the board mulls Amtrak’s request to establish Gulf Coast passenger rail service. The board also ordered mediation among all parties.
Forecasters at Colorado State University say 2022 will see an above-average number of hurricanes and tropical storms.
The evidentiary hearing before the Surface Transportation Board, which was originally scheduled for two days, will likely tack on two more days as the board collects lots of data and testimony over how Amtrak’s service could affect freight and port operations.
The terminal in Orange, Texas, serves a diverse range of customers and is located between Beaumont, Texas, and Lake Charles, Louisiana.
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.
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.
Amtrak has petitioned the Surface Transportation Board to compel CSX and Norfolk Southern to allow access to their Gulf Coast networks as part of a broader plan to restore passenger service between Mobile, Alabama, and New Orleans.
