[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 99 (Wednesday, May 22, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30395-30396]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-12201]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Surface Transportation Board
[Docket No. FD 35719 (Sub-No. 1)]
Grainbelt Corporation--Trackage Rights Exemption--BNSF Railway
Company and Stillwater Central Railroad Company
By petition filed on February 28, 2013, Grainbelt Corporation
(GNBC) requests that the Board partially revoke a class exemption to
permit the amended trackage rights arrangements between grantee GNBC
and grantors BNSF Railway Company (BNSF) and Stillwater Central
Railroad Company (SLWC) exempted in Grainbelt Corporation--Trackage
Rights Exemption--BNSF Railway Company and Stillwater Center Railroad
Company, Docket No. FD 35719, served and published in the Federal
Register on March 15, 2013 (78 FR 16,570), to expire on February 1,
2023.
In the notice of exemption, BNSF and SLWC each agreed to grant
amended trackage rights to GNBC, which together allow GNBC to provide
local service to a grain shuttle facility in Headrick, Okla.
Specifically, BNSF has amended its trackage rights to permit local
service over the connecting line between the connection with SLWC east
of Long, Okla. (milepost 668.73), and Altus, Okla. (milepost 688.00),
and SLWC has amended its trackage rights to permit local service
between Snyder Yard (milepost 664.00) and its connection with BNSF east
of Long (milepost 668.73).
Prior to the amended trackage rights arrangement exempted in Docket
No. FD 35719, GNBC already held overhead trackage rights granted by the
predecessor of BNSF between Snyder Yard (milepost 664.00) and Quanah,
Tex. (milepost 723.30), under which GNBC has the right to interchange
at Quanah with BNSF and Union Pacific Railroad Company. BNSF
subsequently sold a portion of the subject trackage to SLWC. The
original trackage rights were supplemented in 2009 to allow GNBC to
[[Page 30396]]
operate between Snyder and Altus, with the right to perform limited
local service at Long. See Grainbelt Corp.--Trackage Rights Exemption--
BNSF Ry. and Stillwater Cent. R.R., FD 35332 (STB served Dec. 17,
2009). GNBC also requests that the Board extend the expiration date of
these supplemental trackage rights, previously set for 2019 by the
Board,\1\ to February 1, 2023, so that the supplemental and amended
trackage rights will expire simultaneously.
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\1\ See Grainbelt Corp.--Trackage Rights Exemption--BNSF Ry. and
Stillwater Cent. R.R., FD 35332 (Sub-No. 1) (STB served Mar. 12,
2010).
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Discussion and Conclusion
Although the parties have expressly agreed on the duration of the
amended trackage rights arrangements, trackage rights approved under
the class exemption at 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(7) typically remain effective
indefinitely, regardless of any contract provisions. Occasionally,
trackage rights exemptions have been granted for a limited time period
rather than in perpetuity. See, e.g., Norfolk S. Ry.--Temporary
Trackage Rights Exemption--Grand Trunk W. R.R. and Wisconsin Cent.
Ltd., FD 35715 (Sub-No. 1) (STB served Mar. 19, 2013); Union Pac.
R.R.--Trackage Rights Exemption--The Burlington N. & Santa Fe Ry., FD
34242 (Sub-No. 1) (STB served Oct. 7, 2002).
Under 49 U.S.C. 10502, the Board may exempt a person, class of
persons, or a transaction or service, in whole or in part, when it
finds that: (1) Continued regulation is not necessary to carry out the
rail transportation policy of 49 U.S.C. 10101; and (2) either the
transaction or service is of limited scope, or regulation is not
necessary to protect shippers from the abuse of market power.
GNBC's amended trackage rights have already been authorized under
the class exemption at 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(7).\2\ See R.R. Consolidation
Procedures--Trackage Rights Exemption, 1 I.C.C.2d 270 (1985). Granting
partial revocation in these circumstances would promote the rail
transportation policy by eliminating the need to file a second pleading
seeking discontinuance when the agreements expire, thereby promoting
the rail transportation policy goals at 49 U.S.C. 10101(2), (4), (5),
(7), and (15). Moreover, limiting the term of the trackage rights is
consistent with the limited scope of the transaction previously
exempted and would not result in an abuse of market power. This is
because the amended trackage rights that are the subject of the
exemption are being granted solely to allow GNBC to provide local
service between the grain shippers located on GNBC and the grain
shuttle facility located at Headrick in single line service. Therefore,
we will grant the petition and permit the amended trackage rights
exempted in Docket No. FD 35719 to expire on February 1, 2023. We will
also grant GNBC's request that the Board extend the date to February 1,
2023, for expiration of the supplemental trackage rights previously
granted in Docket No. FD 35332 and set to expire in 2019 in Docket No.
FD 35332 (Sub-No. 1), so that the supplemental and amended trackage
rights will expire simultaneously.
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\2\ GNBC points out that, although the trackage rights are only
temporary, because the rights include more than just overhead
trackage rights and will remain in effect for more than one year,
they do not qualify for the Board's exemption for temporary trackage
rights at 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(8).
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To provide the statutorily mandated protection to any employee
adversely affected by the discontinuance of the amended trackage
rights, we will impose the employee protective conditions set forth in
Oregon Short Line Railroad--Abandonment Portion Goshen Branch Between
Firth & Ammon, in Bingham & Bonneville Counties, Idaho (Oregon Short
Line), 360 I.C.C. 91 (1979).
This decision will not significantly affect either the quality of
the human environment or the conservation of energy resources.
It is ordered:
1. The petition for partial revocation is granted.
2. Under 49 U.S.C. 10502, the trackage rights described in Docket
No. FD 35719 are exempted, as discussed above, to permit the trackage
rights to expire on February 1, 2023, subject to the employee
protective conditions set forth in Oregon Short Line.
3. GNBC's supplemental trackage rights granted in Docket No. FD
35332, previously set to expire in 2019 in Docket No. FD 35332 (Sub-No.
1), are permitted to expire on February 1, 2023, subject to the
employee protective conditions set forth in Oregon Short Line.
4. Notice will be published in the Federal Register on May 22,
2013.
5. This decision will be effective on June 21, 2013. Petitions to
stay must be filed by June 3, 2013. Petitions for reconsideration must
be filed by June 11, 2013.
Decided: May 16, 2013.
By the Board, Chairman Elliott, Vice Chairman Begeman, and
Commissioner Mulvey.
Raina S. White,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2013-12201 Filed 5-21-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P