Mediation leads to deal in STB’s Amtrak Gulf Coast case
Parties offer no details on 11th-hour agreement, indicate it will take months to finalize details
SOME 20 MONTHS AFTER the matter first came to the Surface Transportation Board, Amtrak, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern, and the Alabama State Port Authority say they have an agreement to allow the launch of passenger service between New Orleans and Mobile, Ala.
All details, however — including such basics as when that service might begin — remain unavailable.
In a brief statement Nov. 22, the parties said they “collectively reached an agreement to support passenger and freight service in the Gulf Coast Corridor. … Due to the confidential nature of the settlement agreement, the parties are not able to provide further comment on its terms at this time.”
The parties asked the STB to hold the matter in abeyance while the deal was completed, saying in a joint filing this would take “several months,” but that after several conditions are met, it will “completely resolve this dispute.
“Some of these conditions are not entirely within the Parties’ control, however.” [Apparently, this refers to the pursuit of federal grants to fund infrastructure improvements.] “Therefore, each Party has reserved its right to reinstate this proceeding in the event certain of those conditions are not met.” The parties will provide the board with a progress report by June 30, 2023, if the deal is not completed by then.
The board issued a decision later the same day agreeing to delay further action, canceling the final hearings slated for Nov. 30 and Dec. 1 and its voting conference set for Dec. 7 to determine an outcome.
In a statement, STB Chairman Martin J. Oberman said he wanted to acknowledge “the significant progress that has been made in achieving a settlement under the new leadership of CSX and NS, which I expect brought a fresh constructive approach to resolving the matter.” Alan Shaw became Norfolk Southern CEO in March, while Joe Hinrichs took over at CSX in September. The statement also noted the board’s preference for parties to solve disputes on their own whenever possible.
Oberman said the agreement would bring “a substantial public benefit” with a positive impact on the region’s economy. “I look forward to the parties informing us of the specific infrastructure improvements that will be made to the rail network as a result of the settlement,” he said.
Amtrak went to the board with its effort to start two daily round trips on the New Orleans-Mobile route in March 2021, with the goal of beginning service in 2022. That date fell by the wayside as the sides argued in a series of filings, as well as 11 days of hearings, whether the Amtrak trains would cause “unreasonable impairment” of freight operations, which is prohibited by statute. They also had sharply differing views of the infrastructure upgrades that might be needed to address such impairment.
Throughout the process, the board was mindful a decision could be precedent setting for future Amtrak efforts to add service. The settlement avoids establishment of such a precedent.