STB to determine if Class Is should separately report PTC costs (2/11/2011)
2/11/2024Yesterday, the Surface Transportation Board (STB) ruled that it would institute a rulemaking proceeding to explore whether the board should require the nation’s largest railroads to report separately how much they spend on the development, installation and maintenance of positive train control (PTC).
In October 2010, Union Pacific Railroad filed a petition with the STB seeking the institution of a rulemaking that would require Class Is to separately identify PTC expenditures in annual reports issued to the board.
“Unless the board establishes these requirements early in the PTC implementation process, it may be unable to account accurately for PTC costs in pursuing its general industry oversight responsibilities and specific regulatory initiatives, such as improving the Uniform Rail Costing System to better reflect the costs associated with transporting Toxic Inhalation Hazards,” UP officials said in the filing.
Canadian Pacific and Norfolk Southern Railway later submitted filings that support UP’s petition, while the Fertilizer Institute and PPG Industries Inc. submitted filings in opposition.
STB members granted UP’s petition to institute a rulemaking proceeding because “the proposal … to segregate such data to make it separately identifiable is an issue that warrants further consideration,” according to the ruling.
“However, we have made no determination regarding the merits of UP’s specific proposal,” STB members said in their decision. “We will address the arguments and issues already raised by the parties in their filings, as well as establish further procedures for public comment, in a subsequent decision.”
Source: Progressive Railroading Daily News