[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 220 (Tuesday, November 16, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70076-70077]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-28828]



[[Page 70076]]

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board

[Docket No. FD 35425]


Tennessee Southern Railroad Company, Patriot Rail, LLC, Patriot 
Rail Holdings LLC, and Patriot Rail Corp.--Continuance in Control 
Exemption--Columbia & Cowlitz Railway, LLC, DeQueen and Eastern 
Railroad, LLC, Golden Triangle Railroad, LLC, Mississippi & Skuna 
Valley Railroad, LLC, Patriot Woods Railroad, LLC, and Texas, Oklahoma 
& Eastern Railroad, LLC

    Tennessee Southern Railroad Company (TSRR), Patriot Rail, LLC 
(PRL), and its subsidiaries Patriot Rail Holdings LLC (PRH), and 
Patriot Rail Corp. (Patriot) (collectively, parties), have filed a 
verified notice of exemption to continue in control of Columbia & 
Cowlitz Railway, LLC (CLC), DeQueen and Eastern Railroad, LLC (DQE), 
Golden Triangle Railroad, LLC (GTRA), Mississippi & Skuna Valley 
Railroad, LLC (MSV), Patriot Woods Railroad, LLC (PAW), and Texas, 
Oklahoma & Eastern Railroad, LLC (TOE) upon their becoming Class III 
rail carriers.
    This transaction is related to 6 concurrently filed verified 
notices of exemption, as follows: Docket No. FD 35426, Columbia & 
Cowlitz Railway, LLC--Acquisition and Operation Exemption--Columbia & 
Cowlitz Railway Company, wherein CLC seeks to acquire and operate 
approximately 8.5 miles of rail line between Longview, milepost 0.0, 
and Ostrander Junction, milepost 8.5, including auxiliary and spur 
tracks, in Cowlitz County, Wash.; Docket No. FD 35427, DeQueen and 
Eastern Railroad, LLC--Acquisition and Operation Exemption--DeQueen and 
Eastern Railroad Company, wherein DQE seeks to acquire and operate 
approximately 47 miles of rail line between the Oklahoma-Arkansas state 
border, milepost 40.0, and Perkins, Ark., milepost 87.0, including 
auxiliary, temporary storage, and spur tracks, in Howard and Sevier 
Counties, Ark.; Docket No. FD 35428, Golden Triangle Railroad, LLC--
Acquisition and Operation Exemption--Golden Triangle Railroad Company, 
wherein GTRA seeks to acquire and operate approximately 8.6 miles of 
rail line between Trinity, Miss., milepost 8.6, and Triangle Jct., 
Miss, milepost 0.0, including the side track at Bell Avenue, in Lowndes 
County, Miss.; Docket No. FD 35429, Mississippi & Skuna Valley 
Railroad, LLC--Acquisition and Operation Exemption--Mississippi & Skuna 
Valley Railroad Company, wherein MSV seeks to acquire and operate 
approximately 21 miles of rail line between Bruce Junction, milepost 
21.0, and Bruce, milepost 0.0, in Yalobusha and Calhoun Counties, 
Miss.; Docket No. FD 35430, Texas, Oklahoma & Eastern Railroad, LLC--
Acquisition and Operation Exemption--Texas, Oklahoma & Eastern Railroad 
Company, wherein TOE seeks to acquire and operate approximately 40 
miles of rail line between the Oklahoma-Arkansas state border, milepost 
40.0, and Valliant, Okla., milepost 0.0, including auxiliary, storage, 
and spur tracks, in McCurtain County, Okla.; and Docket No. FD 35431, 
Patriot Woods Railroad, LLC--Acquisition and Operation Exemption--
Weyerhaeuser NR Company, Weyerhaeuser Woods Railroad Operating 
Division, wherein PAW seeks to acquire and operate approximately 21.5 
miles of rail line between the connection with the Columbia & Cowlitz 
Railway Company at Ostrander Junction, milepost 8.5, and Green 
Mountain, milepost 30.0, including auxiliary and temporary storage 
tracks, in Cowlitz County, Wash.
    The parties intend to consummate the transaction on or after 
December 21, 2010.
    PRL and its subsidiaries, including CLC, DQE, GTRA, MSV, PAW, and 
TOE, entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement (Agreement) dated July 
21, 2010, with Weyerhaeuser NR Company (Weyerhaeuser) and 
Weyerhaeuser's subsidiaries, Columbia & Cowlitz Railway Company, 
DeQueen and Eastern Railroad Company, Golden Triangle Railroad Company, 
Mississippi & Skuna Valley Railroad Company, and Texas, Oklahoma & 
Eastern Railroad Company to acquire substantially all of the assets of 
the Weyerhaeuser subsidiaries, and the assets of Weyerhaeuser Woods 
Railroad, a noncarrier operating division of Weyerhaeuser. The 
Agreement was filed under seal in this docket on October 28, 2010.\1\
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    \1\ A motion for protective order was filed on October 27, 2010. 
The motion is being addressed in a separate decision.
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    TSRR is a subsidiary of PRL, PRH, and Patriot and does not control 
any other railroad subsidiaries. PRL is a noncarrier limited liability 
company that owns not less than 51% of the equity interests in PRH, 
which owns 100% of the stock of Patriot. Patriot is a noncarrier 
holding company that owns 100% of the stock of 7 Class III railroads: 
Tennessee Southern Railroad Company (TSRR); Rarus Railway Company 
(Rarus); Utah Central Railway Company (Utah); Sacramento Valley 
Railroad, Inc. (SAVR); Louisiana and North West Railroad Company LLC 
(L&NW); Temple & Central Texas Railway, Inc. (TC); and Piedmont & 
Northern Railway, Inc. (P&N). Patriot also owns 100% of the stock of 
the noncarrier subsidiaries CLC, DQE, GTRA, MSV, PAW, and TOE.
    PRL, PRH, and Patriot state that they have successfully managed 
short line railroads for more than a decade and that they intend to use 
that experience and expertise and their financial resources to provide 
rail freight service to communities and industries that wish to have 
additional transportation options. They also intend to make CLC, DQE, 
GTRA, MSV, PAW, and TOE financially viable railroads.
    The parties represent that: (1) The rail lines to be operated by 
CLC, DQE, GTRA, MSV, PAW, and TOE will not connect with any of the 
subsidiary railroads of PRL, PRH, and Patriot; (2) the acquisition of 
CLC, DQE, GTRA, MSV, PAW, and TOE is not intended to connect with any 
railroads in the corporate family of PRL, PRH, and Patriot\2\; and (3) 
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).
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    \2\ TSRR's lines are located in Tennessee and Alabama, Rarus' 
lines are located in Montana, Utah's lines are located in Utah, 
SAVR's lines are located in California, L&NW's lines are located in 
Arkansas and Louisiana, TC's lines are located in Texas, and P&N's 
lines are located in North Carolina. As noted, CLC will operate 
lines in southwestern Washington, DQE will operate lines in 
southwestern Arkansas, GTRA will operate lines in northeastern 
Mississippi, MSV will operate lines in north central Mississippi, 
PAW will operate lines in southwestern Washington, and TOE will 
operate lines in eastern Oklahoma.
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    Under 49 U.S.C. 10502(g), the Board may not use its exemption 
authority to relieve a rail carrier of its statutory obligation to 
protect the interests of its employees. Section 11326(c), however, does 
not provide for labor protection for transactions under sections 11324 
and 11325 that involve only Class III rail carriers. Accordingly, the 
Board may not impose labor protective conditions here because all of 
the carriers involved are Class III carriers.
    If the verified notice contains false or misleading information, 
the exemption is void ab initio. Petitions to revoke the exemption 
under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d) may be filed at any time. The filing of a 
petition to revoke will not automatically stay the effectiveness of the 
exemption. Stay petitions must be filed no later than November 19, 2010 
(at least 7 days before the exemption becomes effective).

[[Page 70077]]

    An original and 10 copies of all pleadings, referring to Docket No. 
FD 35425, must be filed with the Surface Transportation Board, 395 E 
Street, SW., Washington, DC 20423-0001. In addition, one copy of each 
pleading must be served on Louis E. Gitomer, 600 Baltimore Avenue, 
Suite 301, Towson, MD 21204.
    Board decisions and notices are available on our Web site at http://www.stb.dot.gov.

    Decided: November 10, 2010.

    By the Board, Rachel D. Campbell, Director, Office of 
Proceedings.
Jeffrey Herzig,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2010-28828 Filed 11-15-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P