WASHINGTON — Metra on Tuesday asked the Surface Transportation Board to set conditions and compensation for the Chicago-area commuter railroad’s continued use of Union Pacific tracks and facilities.
In a regulatory filing, Metra told federal regulators that it has been unable to reach a trackage rights agreement with UP that would cover its use of UP’s North, Northwest, and West lines.
The STB, in a Sept. 3 decision, said it “expects and encourages Metra and UP to undertake a concerted, good-faith effort to reach agreement,” but said if they cannot do so, it will establish compensation and conditions for use “in accordance with the statute.” [See “STB grants Metra request…,” Trains.com, Sept. 3, 2025.]
Metra and UP have been negotiating terms of the trackage rights agreement since September.
“The parties have made progress and reached common ground on some elements. For example, Metra anticipates that it will be able to reach agreement with UP on issues including the effective date; maintenance fee; train schedules and special trains and service change requests; dispatching protocol; a joint services committee for ongoing coordination of operational, maintenance, and capital project matters; dispute resolution; and audits,” Metra told the board. “While the parties continue to confer, it is clear at this point that the parties will not reach agreement on all remaining disputed issues in a way that would remove the need for Board involvement.
Still at issue: The scope and term of Metra’s trackage rights; the trackage rights fee, how it is adjusted over time, and the treatment of Metra’s capital investments; performance standards; and liability matters.
Metra proposes a 182-day schedule that includes dates for submitting evidence and replies, concluding with a board decision on June 1, 2026.
“Metra informed UP that it was filing this request, and discussed the possibility of a joint request, which UP declined,” Metra told the STB.
The Metra filing is the latest twist in a long-running dispute over commuter service.
Metra requested that the board provide the trackage rights in a March filing, saying its service was “in jeopardy” because of its dispute with Union Pacific [see “Metra asks STB to require Union Pacific to continue…,” Trains.com, March 7, 2025].
In its ruling, the board largely accepts Metra’s arguments for granting the trackage rights and defining the terminal trackage rights area as covering its operating region, and agrees that Metra’s request meets the “public interest” standard required to grant the trackage rights.
“There is, no doubt, a compelling need to grant Metra trackage rights over the UP Lines to provide commuter rail service in the Chicago area,” the three STB board members wrote in the unanimous Sept. 3 decision. “Metra provides a critically important public service. … And UP has made clear that it has no obligation to provide passenger rail service — it secured a declaration from a federal court confirming as much.”
Metra had objected to a number of contract terms that Union Pacific attempted to unilaterally impose in June, which led it to request an injunction earlier in the summer. The board turned down that request, noting that UP had said it would not halt service and that Metra had said it would continue operating without accepting those terms [see “STB turns down Metra request …,” Trains.com, July 2, 2025].
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