Dive Brief:
- Freight railroads recently went to court to fight a new federal rule instituting tougher measures on Amtrak's punctuality, reports the Wall Street Journal.
- Rather than tracking on-time performance at the end of a route, the new rule requires performance to be measured at each stop. The rule will go into effect on Aug. 27.
- The Association of American Railroads, however, challenged the rule on the basis that the Surface Transportation Board does not have the authority to set on-time performance measurement standards.
Dive Insight:
The challenge is part of an ongoing tug-of-war between freight and passenger trains before the U.S. Department of Transportation's Surface Transportation Board, which regulates railroad traffic.The main dispute is over rail "preference," or right of way, which is currently held by passenger trains.
The Surface Transportation Board recently rebuked a move for freight railroads to gain preference over passenger trains, passing the new final rule instead. Freight railroads face penalties if they don't yield to passenger trains, causing the latter to arrive over 15-minutes late at the end of the trip.
The passenger carrier only operates on its own track in the northeast, so it has to work around cargo lines elsewhere. The Association of American Railroads argue the new rules would increase the pressure for freight carriers to cede to passenger trains due to the potential penalties, and consequently decrease freight carrier's own on-time performance.
