[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 173 (Friday, September 6, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72920-72921]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-20118]


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SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD

[Docket No. FD 36781]


Riverside Rail, Inc.--Operation Exemption--Tracks of Riverside 
Industrial Complex, Inc., in Bucks County, Pa.

    Riverside Rail, Inc. (Riverside), a noncarrier, has filed a 
verified notice of exemption under 49 CFR 1150.31 to operate over 
approximately 4,665 feet of private railroad tracks located within a 
68-acre industrial park known as the Riverside Industrial Complex 
(Complex) in Bristol Township, Bucks County, Pa. (the Tracks).\1\ The 
Complex and the Tracks are owned by Riverside's

[[Page 72921]]

corporate parent affiliate, Riverside Industrial Complex, Inc. (RIC), 
and are adjacent to lines of railroad owned by the National Railroad 
Passenger Corporation (Amtrak).
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    \1\ Riverside previously filed a verified notice of exemption to 
operate the Tracks in Docket No. FD 36761, but the notice was 
rejected for a number of reasons. See Riverside Rail--Operation 
Exemption--Tracks of Riverside Indus. Complex in Bucks Cnty., Pa., 
FD 36761 (STB served Mar. 29, 2024). The verified notice filed in 
Docket No. FD 36781, however, provides sufficient information to 
proceed with Riverside's exemption.
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    According to the verified notice, railroad service was provided to 
shippers within the Complex from 1986 to 2006 by Consolidated Railroad 
Corporation (Conrail) pursuant to operating rights over a spur track 
owned by Amtrak and approximately 100 feet of track owned and 
maintained by Conrail that crossed a public road. Per the verified 
notice, the Tracks, which are located solely within the Complex, have 
remained intact on the ground but have been covered in some areas with 
dirt and concrete. Riverside states that the expansion of existing 
business in the Complex in recent years and the potential for 
additional railroad customers locating there in the future have led 
Amtrak, Conrail, and RIC to negotiate a series of agreements to 
reestablish railroad service to the Complex. This is to be accomplished 
through (1) RIC and Riverside uncovering and rehabilitating the Tracks 
in coordination with Conrail; (2) Amtrak reconstructing the connecting 
spur track on its property, which is expected to be completed in 
September 2024; and (3) RIC reinstalling the road crossing, which is 
also anticipated to occur in September 2024. Upon consummation of its 
authority from the Board, Riverside will lease the Tracks from RIC and 
retain the common carrier obligation to provide rail operations over 
them. However, Riverside anticipates that initially, Conrail will be 
the physical operator of the Tracks pursuant to trackage or operating 
rights it obtains from Riverside under a separate agreement and any 
necessary authority Conrail receives from the Board. The verified 
notice states that rail operations by Conrail will consist primarily of 
switching railcars to and from shippers in the Complex and a point of 
connection to the tracks of Amtrak. Any future operations by Riverside 
would be in interchange with Conrail on Complex property.
    Riverside certifies that its annual projected revenues as a result 
of the transaction will not exceed those that would qualify it as a 
Class III carrier and will not exceed $5 million. Riverside also states 
that neither its lease and operating agreement with RIC nor Riverside's 
and/or Conrail's proposed operation of the Tracks involve any provision 
or agreement that would limit future interchange with a third-party 
connecting carrier.
    The earliest this transaction may be consummated is September 22, 
2024, the effective date of the exemption.
    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. Petitions for stay must be filed no later than September 13, 
2024 (at least seven days before the exemption becomes effective).
    All pleadings, referring to Docket No. FD 36781, 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, a copy of each pleading must be served on 
Riverside's representative, Thomas W. Wilcox, Law Office of Thomas W. 
Wilcox, LLC, 1629 K Street NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20006.
    According to Riverside, 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: September 3, 2024.

    By the Board, Valerie O. Quinn, Acting Director, Office of 
Proceedings.
Eden Besera,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2024-20118 Filed 9-5-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P