[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 194 (Tuesday, October 7, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52373-52374]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-26579]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board
[STB Ex Parte No. 573]


Rail Service in the Western United States

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board.

ACTION: Notice of proceeding and public hearing.

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SUMMARY: The Surface Transportation Board (Board) is instituting a 
proceeding and will hold a public hearing on October 27, 1997, at its 
offices in Washington, DC, to provide interested persons the 
opportunity to report on the status of rail service in the western 
United States and to review proposals for solving the service problems 
that exist.

DATES: Persons wishing to appear at the hearing and make a statement 
must submit their request to speak at the hearing, and their requested 
time allotment, by October 9, 1997. The Board will issue a schedule for 
the hearing, along with a list of speakers

[[Page 52374]]

and their allotted times, by October 16, 1997. Speakers' written 
statements must be filed with the Board by October 23, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Send requests to speak and requested time allotments (an 
original and 10 copies) referring to STB Ex Parte No. 573 to: Surface 
Transportation Board, Office of the Secretary, Case Control Unit, 1925 
K Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20423-0001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joseph H. Dettmar (202) 565-1600. [TDD 
for the hearing impaired: (202) 565-1695.]

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Surface Transportation Board (Board) is 
instituting a proceeding on its own motion and will hold a public 
hearing beginning at 10:00 a.m., on October 27, 1997, at its offices at 
1925 K Street, N.W., Washington, DC, to provide an opportunity for 
interested persons, including carriers, shippers, and employees, to 
report on the status of rail service in the western United States and 
to review proposals for solving service problems. The Board has been 
made aware of railroad service problems in this area of the country 
[recently involving the Union Pacific Railroad Company/Southern Pacific 
Transportation Company (UP/SP)] through formal filings and public 
accounts, and, more recently, through informal communications between 
affected persons and the Board's Office of Compliance and Enforcement 
(OCE) about specific UP/SP service problems, which OCE has worked with 
UP/SP to resolve. Based on this information, we believe it is 
appropriate to hold a public hearing on the issue of rail service in 
the western part of the country, problems in the delivery of that 
service, and solutions, both governmental and non-governmental, that 
have been offered or might be offered to remedy these service problems. 
The focus of this proceeding is on the immediate resolution of existing 
problems.
    This proceeding and this public hearing are being conducted 
separate and apart from the ongoing oversight proceeding in Union 
Pacific Corporation, Union Pacific Railroad Company, and Missouri 
Pacific Railroad Company--Control and Merger-- Southern Pacific Rail 
Corporation, Southern Pacific Transportation Company, St. Louis 
Southwestern Railway Company, SPCSL Corp., and The Denver and Rio 
Grande Western Railroad Company, STB Finance Docket No. 32760 (Sub-No. 
21). There, the focus is on whether the conditions we imposed in 
approving the application in Finance Docket No. 32760 have been 
successful in resolving the competitive problems that we found would 
exist as a result of our approval of the UP/SP control transaction in 
the absence of those conditions. Parties to the oversight proceeding 
have, however, commented on service problems on the UP/SP system, and 
both UP/SP and The Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company, in 
their most recent quarterly reports, filed October 1, 1997, in the 
oversight proceeding, have separately put forth proposals that, in 
their view, would lead to a resolution of the existing service 
problems. Given the immediacy of these service problems and the 
national, as well as regional, interest in their resolution, we are 
instituting this proceeding to focus specifically on the rail service 
problems that have arisen in the western part of the country. 
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    \1\  To ensure that all parties to the oversight proceeding are 
aware of the proceeding we are instituting by this notice, we will 
serve a copy of this notice on all parties on the service list in 
the oversight proceeding.
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    We encourage interested persons to coordinate the presentation of 
their points of view by selecting of a single individual to appear at 
the hearing on behalf of their common interests so that the opportunity 
for input at the hearing can be maximized. Persons wishing to appear 
and make a statement at the hearing should submit a request for time to 
speak on or before October 9, 1997. The Board notes that, in the 
interest of a focused hearing, it must necessarily limit the number of 
persons allowed to speak. At this hearing, we intend to concentrate 
more on operational, resource, and customer service matters than on 
legal issues, and it would be helpful if speakers are individuals who 
are able to address such matters. The Board will issue a schedule for 
the October 27, 1997 hearing, along with a list of speakers and their 
allotted times, by October 16, 1997. Speakers' written statements of 
their presentations must be filed with the Board by October 23, 1997.

    Notice of the October 27, 1997 hearing will be published in the 
Federal Register.

    Decided: October 2, 1997.

    By the Board, Chairman Morgan and Vice Chairman Owen.
Vernon A. Williams,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 97-26579 Filed 10-6-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-00-U