DOT REPORT #32 - March, 1997 ================================================================= A compilation of rail notices published by the US Department of Transportation between March 16 - 31, 1997. Includes abandonment, operation and control notices, FRA orders and related petitions. Condensed from original. ================================================================= CONTENTS: Idaho Northern & Pacific Railroad Company; Abandonment Exemption in Wallowa and Union Counties, OR CSX Transportation, Inc.--Abandonment Exemption--in Logan County, WV Wisconsin Central Ltd.--Trackage Rights Exemption--Tomahawk Railway, Limited Partnership Lake State Railway Company--Acquisition and Operation Exemption-- Detroit & Mackinac Railway Company R.J. Corman Railroad Company/Pennsylvania Lines Inc.--Corporate Family Transaction Exemption--Clearfield & Mahoning Railway Company Union Pacific Railroad Company--Abandonment--Plainville Branch (Plainville-Colby Line) in Rooks, Graham, Sheridan, and Thomas Counties, KS; Notice of Findings Notice of Application for Approval of Discontinuance or Modification of a Railroad Signal System or Relief from the Requirements of Title 49 CFR Part 236 Rochester & Southern Railroad, Inc.--Acquisition and Operation Exemption--Consolidated Rail Corporation ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Surface Transportation Board [Docket No. AB-433X] Idaho Northern & Pacific Railroad Company; Abandonment Exemption in Wallowa and Union Counties, OR ACTION: Notice of exemption. SUMMARY: The Board, under 49 U.S.C. 10505 exempts from the prior approval requirements of 49 U.S.C. 10903-04, the abandonment by Idaho Northern & Pacific Railroad Company of a 60.58-mile portion of its Joseph Branch line, in Wallowa and Union Counties, OR, subject to standard labor protective conditions and environmental conditions. DATES: Provided no formal expression of intent to file an offer of financial assistance (OFA) has been received, this exemption will be effective April 17, 1997. Decided: March 12, 1997. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Surface Transportation Board [STB Docket No. AB-55 (Sub-No. 540X)] CSX Transportation, Inc.--Abandonment Exemption--in Logan County, WV CSX Transportation, Inc. (CSXT) has filed a notice of exemption under 49 CFR part 1152 Subpart F--Exempt Abandonments to abandon approximately 10.83-miles of its line of railroad between milepost CLF- 51.76 at Sharples and milepost CLF-62.59 at Kelly, in Logan County, WV. CSXT has certified that: (1) No local traffic has moved over the line for at least 2 years; (2) there is no overhead traffic moving over the line; (3) no formal complaint filed by a user of rail service on the line (or by a state or local government entity acting on behalf of such user) regarding cessation of service over the line either is pending with the Surface Transportation Board (Board) or with any U.S. District Court or has been decided in favor of complainant within the 2-year period; and (4) the requirements at 49 CFR 1105.7 (environmental reports), 49 CFR 1105.8 (historic reports), 49 CFR 1105.11 (transmittal letter), 49 CFR 1105.12 (newspaper publication), and 49 CFR 1152.50(d)(1) (notice to governmental agencies) have been met. Provided no formal expression of intent to file an offer of financial assistance (OFA) has been received, this exemption will be effective on April 23, 1997, unless stayed pending reconsideration. Pursuant to the provisions of 49 CFR 1152.29(e)(2), CSXT shall file a notice of consummation with the Board to signify that it has exercised the authority granted and fully abandoned the line. If consummation has not been effected by CSXT's filing of a notice of consummation by March 28, 1998, and there are no legal or regulatory barriers to consummation, the authority to abandon will automatically expire. Decided: March 14, 1997. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Surface Transportation Board [STB Finance Docket No. 33359] Wisconsin Central Ltd.--Trackage Rights Exemption--Tomahawk Railway, Limited Partnership Tomahawk Railway, Limited Partnership (TRL) has agreed to grant Wisconsin Central Ltd. (WCL) non-exclusive overhead trackage rights over a 0.40-mile portion of TRL's line of railroad between WCL milepost 133.09 and WCL milepost 133.49 in Tomahawk, WI. The proposed trackage rights will connect with an existing WCL rail line at milepost 133.09 and, at milepost 133.49, with a TRL rail line which WCL seeks to acquire. The proposed trackage rights will allow WCL to continue to operate over that portion of TRL's line not being acquired by WCL and, will provide an overhead route between WCL's line to Ashland, WI, and the remainder of WCL's system. The proposed trackage rights will be a substitute for the existing trackage rights over TRL's rail line which were acquired by WCL's predecessor, Soo Line Railroad Company (Soo), in 1986 and assigned to WCL in 1987. WCL concurrently filed a petition for exemption under 49 U.S.C. 10502 from the prior approval requirements of 49 U.S.C. 10902, to permit WCL to acquire from TRL 4.93 miles of rail line between milepost 133.49 at Tomahawk and milepost 138.42 at Bradley, WI (the Bradley Line). Together with a short segment of trackage between WCL milepost 133.49 and WCL milepost 133.09 in Tomahawk (the Tomahawk Segment), which TRL will continue to own, the Bradley Line will provide a connection between an east- west WCL line at Bradley previously owned by Soo and a north-south WCL line terminating at Tomahawk previously owned by the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Railroad Company. The transaction is scheduled to be consummated on approval and consummation of the transaction in STB Finance Docket No. 33358, but in any event no sooner than March 12, 1997, the effective date of this exemption. Decided: March 19, 1997. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Surface Transportation Board [STB Finance Docket No. 33372] Lake State Railway Company--Acquisition and Operation Exemption-- Detroit & Mackinac Railway Company Lake State Railway Company (LSR), a Class III railroad, has filed a notice of exemption to acquire and operate 275 miles of rail line between Kawkawlin and Gaylord, MI, and between Pinconning and Rogers City, MI, from the Detroit & Mackinac Railway Company (D&M), as follows: (1) The Pinconning Subdivision, from approximately milepost 5.0 to milepost 11; (2) the Mackinac Subdivision, from approximately milepost 116 to the end of the line at milepost 122; (3) the Huron Subdivision, from approximately milepost 16 to milepost 151.25, including the Pinconning crossover; (4) the Rogers City Branch from milepost 0.0 to milepost 11.0; and (5) the Hillman Branch and the Alabaster Branch. LSR currently leases and operates the rail lines that are the subject of this notice from D&M. The transaction was to be consummated on or after the effective date of the exemption (7 days after the notice of exemption was filed), but no later than April 16, 1997. LSR states that: (i) The acquisition will not place LSR in control of any connecting railroads; (ii) the acquisition is not part of a series of anticipated transactions that would place LSR in control of any connecting railroad; and (iii) the transaction does not involve a Class I carrier. Therefore, the transaction is exempt from the prior approval requirements of 49 U.S.C. 11323. See 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(2). Decided: March 24, 1997. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION [STB Finance Docket No. 33365] R.J. Corman Railroad Company/Pennsylvania Lines Inc.--Corporate Family Transaction Exemption--Clearfield & Mahoning Railway Company R.J. Corman Railroad Company/Pennsylvania Lines, Inc. (RJCP) and the Clearfield & Mahoning Railway Company (C&M), Class III common carrier railroads, have jointly filed a verified notice of exemption. C&M will agree to extend RJCP's current trackage rights from Curwensville, PA, milepost 18.0, to approximately East Bickford, PA, milepost 17.4, approximately 0.6 miles. Simultaneously, RJCP and C&M will terminate a lease agreement over approximately 8.4 route miles of C&M rail line between milepost 25.8, at Clearfield, and milepost 17.4, at East Bickford. RJCP and C&M are commonly controlled by Richard J. Corman. RJCP currently operates, by assignment, incidental trackage rights over C&M's lines between Clearfield, PA, milepost 25.8, and CB Junction, PA, milepost 19.4, to Curwensville, PA, milepost 18.0, a distance of 7.8 miles. The transaction was to be consummated after the March 7, 1997 effective date of the exemption. The new trackage rights agreement and the termination of the lease agreement between RJCP and C&M are transactions within a corporate family of the type specifically exempted from prior review and approval under 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(3). The parties state that the transaction will not result in adverse changes in service levels, significant operational changes, or a change in the competitive balance with carriers outside the corporate family. Decided: March 24, 1997. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION [STB Docket No. AB-33 (Sub-No. 101)] Union Pacific Railroad Company--Abandonment--Plainville Branch (Plainville-Colby Line) in Rooks, Graham, Sheridan, and Thomas Counties, KS; Notice of Findings The Board has found that the public convenience and necessity permit Union Pacific Railroad Company to abandon its line of railroad known as the Plainville-Colby Line between milepost 102.0 near Plainville and milepost 201.0 near Colby, a distance of 99.0 miles, in Rooks, Graham, Sheridan and Thomas Counties, KS. The abandonment authorization will be effective April 28, 1997, unless within 15 days after this publication, the Board also finds that one or more financially responsible persons (including a governmental authority) have offered financial assistance (through subsidy or purchase) to enable the rail service to be continued. Decided: March 21, 1997. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Federal Railroad Administration Notice of Application for Approval of Discontinuance or Modification of a Railroad Signal System or Relief from the Requirements of Title 49 CFR Part 236 Pursuant to Title 49 CFR part 235 and 49 U.S.C. App. 26, the following railroads have petitioned the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) seeking approval for the discontinuance or modification of the signal system or relief from the requirements of Title 49 CFR Part 236 as detailed below. Block Signal Application (BS-AP)-No. 3420 Applicant: CSX Transportation, Incorporated CSX Transportation, Incorporated seeks approval of the proposed modification of the signal system, at ``SY,'' milepost A-388.4, near Division, including: conversion of the north end of the No. 5 crossover switch from power to hand operation, discontinuance and removal of 44R signal, and relocation of 44L signal northward. The reason given for the proposed changes is to improve operations and increase efficiency. BS-AP-No. 3421 Applicants: CSX Transportation, Incorporated, Norfolk Southern Corporation, Belt Railway of Chicago, Chicago Commuter Rail Service Board CSX Transportation, Incorporated (CSX), Norfolk Southern Corporation (NS), Belt Railway of Chicago (BRC), and Chicago Commuter Rail Service Board (Metra), jointly seek approval of the proposed modification of 75th Street Interlocker, milepost DC-22.5, Chicago, Illinois, on CSX's Blue Island Subdivision, Chicago Division, involving main tracks of CSX, NS, BRC, and Metra, consisting of the discontinuance and removal of: 11 mechanically operated switch point derails, 7 mechanically operated sliding derails, and 2 automatic signals. The proposed changes are associated with the replacement of the mechanical interlocking machine with a modern facility with overrun protection. The reason given for the proposed changes is to modernize and remote control the mechanical interlocking facilities. Issued in Washington, D.C. on March 21, 1997. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Surface Transportation Board [STB Finance Docket No. 33375] Rochester & Southern Railroad, Inc.--Acquisition and Operation Exemption--Consolidated Rail Corporation Rochester & Southern Railroad, Inc. (R&S), a Class III rail carrier, has filed a notice of exemption under 49 CFR 1150.41 to acquire and operate the 0.7-mile line of Consolidated Rail Corporation (Conrail) known as the Rochester Industrial Track (Line Code 4835) between milepost 5.2 and milepost 5.9 in the State of New York. In addition, Conrail will grant incidental overhead trackage rights over the 0.3-mile West Shore Branch (Line Code 4833) between milepost 362.0 and the switch to Conrail's Genesee Junction Yard at milepost 361.7. The transaction was expected to be consummated on or about March 14, 1997. Decided: March 24, 1997. ================================================================== Comments or questions about this compilation should be directed to Paul Moore at 71367.1057@Compuserve.com. ==================================================================