[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 71 (Thursday, April 13, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22512-22513]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-07721]


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SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD

[Docket No. FD 36688]


Green Mountain Railroad Corporation--Trackage Rights Exemption--
New England Central Railroad, Inc.

    Green Mountain Railroad Corporation (GMRC) has filed a verified 
notice of exemption under 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(7) for acquisition of 
overhead trackage rights over approximately 61.4 miles of rail line 
owned by New England Central Railroad, Inc. (NECR), between milepost 
14.46 at White River Junction, Vt., and milepost 99.0 at Millers Falls, 
Mass. (the Line).\1\
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    \1\ GMRC notes that, due to the Line's history, the mileposts 
are not indicative of the Line's total route miles and the stated 
distance is accurate although the mileposts could suggest otherwise.

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    GMRC and NECR have entered into a written trackage rights agreement 
\2\ that grants GMRC overhead trackage rights over the Line. Those 
rights allow GMRC to enter and exit the Line at certain intermediate 
points as well as its terminal points, as described in the verified 
notice. GMRC states that the trackage rights are among settlement terms 
that the Board imposed ``as a condition of the Board's approval'' in 
CSX Corp.--Control & Merger--Pan Am Systems, Inc., FD 36472 et al., 
(STB served Apr. 14, 2022).
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    \2\ A redacted version of the trackage rights agreement between 
GMRC and NECR was filed with the verified notice. An unredacted 
version of the agreement was submitted to the Board under seal 
concurrently with a motion for protective order, which is addressed 
in a separate decision.
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    The transaction may be consummated on or after April 27, 2023, the 
effective date of the exemption.
    As a condition to this exemption, any employees affected by the 
acquisition of the trackage rights will be protected by the conditions 
imposed in Norfolk & Western Railway--Trackage Rights--Burlington 
Northern, Inc., 354 I.C.C. 605 (1978), as modified in Mendocino Coast 
Railway--Lease & Operate--California Western Railroad, 360 I.C.C. 653 
(1980).
    If the 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. 
Petitions for stay must be filed no later than April 20, 2023 (at least 
seven days before the exemption becomes effective).
    All pleadings, referring to Docket No. FD 36688, must be filed with 
the Surface Transportation Board via e-filing on the Board's website or 
in writing addressed to 395 E Street SW, Washington, DC 20423-0001. In 
addition, a copy of each pleading must be served on GMRC's 
representative, Robert A. Wimbish, Fletcher & Sippel LLC, 29 North 
Wacker Drive, Suite 800, Chicago, IL 60606.
    According to GMRC, this action is categorically excluded from 
environmental review under 49 CFR 1105.6(c) and from historic 
preservation reporting requirements under 49 CFR 1105.8(b).
    Board decisions and notices are available at www.stb.gov.

    Decided: April 7, 2023.

    By the Board, Mai T. Dinh, Director, Office of Proceedings.
Kenyatta Clay,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2023-07721 Filed 4-12-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P