[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 116 (Friday, June 16, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39501-39502]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-12960]


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SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD

[Docket No. FD 36703]


Dover and Delaware River Railroad, LLC--Lease Containing 
Interchange Commitment and Trackage Rights Exemption--Norfolk Southern 
Railway Company and New Jersey Transit Corporation

    Dover and Delaware River Railroad, LLC (DDRR), a Class III rail 
carrier, has filed a verified notice of exemption under 49 CFR 1150.41 
to amend an existing lease between DDRR and Norfolk Southern Railway 
Company (NSR) and an existing trackage rights agreement among NSR, 
DDRR, and the New Jersey Transit Corporation (NJT), that together will 
allow DDRR to continue operating over 107.9 miles of rail line in the 
State of New Jersey.\1\ Under the amended agreements, a 0.75-mile 
segment of line that is subject to the current trackage rights 
agreement will become subject to the amended lease agreement instead. 
The amended lease will also revise other commercial terms.
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    \1\ See Dover & Del. River R.R.--Lease with Interchange 
Commitment & Trackage Rights Exemption--Norfolk S. Ry. & N.J. 
Transit Corp., FD 36258 et al. (STB served Feb. 15, 2019) 
(authorizing DDRR to operate over these lines).
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    Under the amended lease agreement with NSR, DDRR will continue 
leasing: (1) the Washington Secondary, between milepost WD 58.0 at 
Hackettstown, N.J. and milepost WD 80.3 at Phillipsburg, N.J.; (2) the 
Old Road Industrial Track, between milepost 66.5 TG at Washington, N.J. 
and milepost 67.6 TG at Washington, N.J.; (3) the Pompton Industrial 
Track, between milepost PQ 21.4 at Mountain View, N.J., and milepost 
22.2 at Wayne, N.J.; and (4) the Totowa Spur, between milepost TO 18.0 
at Totowa, N.J., and milepost 21.0 at Wayne. In addition, a segment of 
rail line between WD 57.25 and WD 58.0 will be added to the lease. 
These lines are referred to as the Amended Lease Lines.
    Under the amended trackage rights agreement with NSR and NJT, DDRR 
will continue operating over: (1) the Morristown Line, between milepost 
7.8 at Newark Broad Street in Newark, N.J., and milepost 48.1 at 
Netcong, N.J.; (2) the Morristown Line, between milepost 48.1 at 
Netcong, and milepost 57.25 at Hackettstown; (3) the Gladstone Branch, 
between milepost 20.1 at Summit, N.J., and milepost 25.7 at Berkeley 
Heights, N.J.; and (4) the Montclair Line, between milepost 9.0 at 
Newark Roseville Avenue in Newark, and milepost 33.9 at Denville, N.J. 
The segment of rail line between milepost WD 57.25 and WD 58.0 will no 
longer be part of the trackage rights agreement. These lines are 
referred to as the Amended Trackage Lines.
    This transaction is related to a concurrently filed verified notice 
of exemption in New Jersey Transit Corp.--Acquisition Exemption--
Norfolk Southern Railway in the Counties of Morris & Warren, N.J., 
Docket No. FD 36676, in which NJT will acquire from NSR the portion of 
the Morristown Line \2\ between milepost 48.1 and milepost 57.25.\3\
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    \2\ This line is referred to as part of the Washington Secondary 
by NJT in the related proceeding.
    \3\ Concurrent with its verified notice in Docket No. FD 36676, 
NJT also filed a motion to dismiss its notice of exemption on the 
grounds that its proposed transaction does not require authorization 
from the Board.
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    DDRR certifies that its projected annual revenues from this 
transaction will not result in the creation of a Class I or Class II 
rail carrier and will not exceed $5 million. As is required under 49 
CFR 1150.33(h)(1), DDRR discloses in its verified notice that the 
amended lease agreement with NSR for the Amended Leased Lines contains 
an interchange commitment that will affect interchange with carriers 
other than NSR on the Amended Leased Lines. DDRR states that the 
interchange commitment in the amended lease has not been changed from 
the one in the current lease. DDRR has provided additional information 
regarding the interchange commitment as required under 49 CFR 
1150.33(h).
    According to the verified notice, DDRR and NSR have entered into 
the amended lease agreement for the Amended Leased Lines and DDRR, NSR, 
and NJT are amending the current trackage rights agreement to cover 
DDRR's operation of the Amended Trackage Lines, but the amended 
agreements will not become effective until the effective date of the 
verified notice. The earliest this transaction may be consummated is 
July 1, 2023, the effective date of the exemption (30 days after the 
verified notice was filed).
    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

[[Page 39502]]

the exemption. Petitions for stay must be filed no later than June 23, 
2023.
    All pleadings, referring to Docket No. FD 36703, must be filed with 
the Surface Transportation Board either via e-filing on the Board's 
website or in writing addressed to 395 E Street SW, Washington, DC 
20423-0001. In addition, one copy of each pleading must be served on 
DDRR's representative, Justin J. Marks, Clark Hill PLC, 1001 
Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Suite 1300 South, Washington, DC 20004.
    According to DDRR, this action is categorically excluded from 
environmental review under 49 CFR 1105.6(c) and from historic reporting 
requirements under 49 CFR 1105.8(b).
    Board decisions and notices are available at www.stb.gov.

    Decided: June 12, 2023.

    By the Board, Mai T. Dinh, Director, Office of Proceedings.
Jeffrey Herzig,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2023-12960 Filed 6-15-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P