WASHINGTON — Surface Transportation Board Chairman Patrick Fuchs has updated status of several long-running board proceedings as part of his effort to expedite their resolution.
“The agency continues to make significant progress concluding outstanding proceedings to resolve disputes, facilitate efficient market entry and exit, and ensure a sound national supply chain,” Fuchs said in a press release. “I expect that the Board will continue to increase the speed of adjudications in the coming months.”
Proceedings addressed in the update include:
— A July 2021 request by several organizations asking the board to adopt rules regarding railroad use of private freight cars and related issues. The last board action was in July 2022; Fuchs plans to present a draft action for consideration by the board this month.
— An August 2023 filing by Kansas City Southern requesting enforcement of conditions imposed in the board’s approval of Union Pacific’s acquisition of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad. The most recent action by the board was in September of 2023. Fuchs said that in April, he presented a course of action for consideration by the full board.
— A rule for Final Offer Rate Review, set by the board in December 2022, was struck down by a federal court in August 2024. Fuchs offered a draft action in response in April; a decision is expected this month.
— A BNSF Railway petition to enforce conditions of the Union Pacific-Southern Pacific merger regarding access to a quarry in Little Rock, Ark., and a similar filing regarding access to a rail-served customer in Texas. The initial filings were in February 2024; the board’s last action was later that month. Fuchs expects to present a draft action this month.
— An April 2024 request by the City of Philadelphia for the board to issue an order on matters regarding the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad. The board last acted in May 2024; Fuchs anticipates a draft action for the full board in June.
— A request in February 2025 by the Kansas Department of Transportation and Sunflower Redevelopment for an order addressing jurisdictional matters over track and easements in De Soto, Kan. Fuchs will offer a draft action to the full board this month, with a decision expected within a month.
