Patriot Rail, Fortress make short-line moves

Two short-line holding companies played prominent roles in three major developments last month.

Patriot Rail Corp. helped subsidiary the Sacramento Valley Railroad (SAV) obtain a long-term contract to provide freight-rail services for a Sacramento, Calif., business park. SAV will provide all car switching and other services, support transloading activities on seven miles of track within the park, and interchange with Union Pacific Railroad and BNSF Railway Co.

Patriot Rail also reached an agreement with The Andersons Inc. under which the firm will perform rail-car maintenance and repair services at facilities owned by Patriot Rail’s Butte, Anaconda & Pacific Railway in Anaconda, Mont. The parties plan to expand the agreement to include other properties owned by Patriot Rail, which also operates the Tennessee Southern and Utah Central railroads.

Meanwhile, Fortress Investment Group L.L.C. submitted a filing to the Surface Transportation Board seeking approval to merge RailAmerica Inc. and Florida East Coast Railway (FECR). Fortress plans to combine the two holdings and make FECR a wholly owned RailAmerica subsidiary.

Fortress acquired RailAmerica — which owns and operates 41 U.S. and Canadian regionals and short lines — and gained control of the 351-mile FECR last year.