Coal Age

NOV 2015

Coal Age Magazine - For nearly 100 years, Coal Age has been the magazine that readers can trust for guidance and insight on this important industry.

Issue link: https://coal.epubxp.com/i/603417

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 22 of 59

but it does illustrate the need to dig for answers. If we look at the "big four" com- panies (BNSF, CSX, NS and UP), we can and should ask them. For example, since UP has said they have spent $1.8 billion so far, why is there a big zero in the third col- umn? Answer: the locomotive hardware installation requires three trips to the shop, so railroads may have reported zeroes when they had partially installed hardware on many locomotives. UP has completed two phases on 4,500 locomo- tives, but has reported zero locomotives completely equipped. In this case, the column heading leads to a deceptive answer. On August 28, Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, chairman of the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, wrote to pertinent rail- road CEOs concerning the deadline imposed by a fearful Congress in 2008. Here is what the "big four" said about what will happen if Congress does not extend the deadline: • BNSF (Carl Ice): "We are developing potential communications to our cus- tomers and passenger rail tenants in the event that no extension enacted by the end of October, as these stakehold- ers may need to make preparations or alternative plans well before the cur- rent December 31, 2015, deadline." Has spent $1.5 billion, expects to spend $0.5 billion more. • CSX (Mike Ward): "CSX is in an unten- able position. On the one hand, we will be unable to comply with the RSIA (Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008) on January 1, yet continuing opera- tions to satisfy our common carrier obligation would mean CSX would be violating the law. It cannot be in the interest of U.S. transportation to sharply impair rail operations solely because of an unstudied deadline achieved through political compro- mise. The devastating consequences of crippling the U.S. rail network, and the threat of massive FRA fines, cannot change the reality that the deadline is impossible." Has spent $1.3 billion, expects to spend $0.6 billion more. • NS (James Squires): "First, NS is con- sidering taking legal action to invali- date the deadline as a violation of due process given its arbitrary nature and the potential to deprive the railroad of cash through fines imposed by FRA. This deadline appears to have been selected with no analysis or feasibility inquiry. Second, NS independently is considering ceasing to ship TIH (toxic by inhalation) commodities and declining to host passenger trains on its network effective January 1, 2016." • UP (Lance Fritz): "It is our plan to embargo all TIH (toxic by inhalation) traffic as well as passenger traffic on our railroad. TIH traffic would be embargoed several weeks prior to January 1, 2016, to ensure an orderly shutdown and clear our system of TIH trainloads prior to the end of the year. We expect the TIH embargo notice pri- or to Thanksgiving. Commuter opera- tions would cease before midnight on December 31, and long distance pas- senger trains will stop originating sev- eral days earlier to ensure that all passengers reach their destinations before the deadline. Has spent $1.8 bil- lion, expects to spend $0.2 billion more. A Glimpse Into 2016 and Beyond Once the railroads stop hauling passen- gers, we can expect to see a sharp increase in automobile traffic, as people will still need to get to work. Look for this to hap- pen when people return after New Year's Day. Expect traffic jams day after day, and higher accident rates. Is this what Congress had in mind when it set an unreachable deadline? Once the railroads stop hauling TIH, highway driving conditions will worsen gradually as tank trucks begin to pick up loads from chemical plants. Chlorine is needed for water purification, and some communities may not be able to produce clean water. Anhydrous ammonia is need- ed for producing fertilizer, so shortages could result in poorer crops and higher prices. If there are not enough trucks to carry the TIH products, more trucks will have to be built, and this will create a vehicle need that is presently not required. CSX alone carried 17,000 car- loads of TIH chemicals in 2014, which is the equivalent of about 46,000 truckloads of the large tank truck model. The current legal deadline for PTC installation is December 31, but the oper- ational deadline to avoid disruptions for Americans who depend on rail trans- portation comes much sooner. Congress must vote by the end of October to extend the PTC deadline. The consequences for inaction will be devastating and could lead to a world where: • Transportation of all goods over freight rail grinds to a halt; • The U.S. economy loses $30 billion; • Household incomes drop by $17 billion; • 700,000 Americans lose their jobs; and • Millions of commuters are stranded. Government Accountability Office Just a little more than two years ago, it was obvious that the December 31 dead- line could not be met. The September Government Accountability Office (GAO) r e p o r t t o C o n g r e s s s a i d , " G i v e n t h e i m p l e m e n t a t i o n c h a l l e n g e s r a i l r o a d s face in meeting the deadline, and to help F R A m a n a g e i t s l i m i t e d r e s o u r c e s , C o n g r e s s s h o u l d c o n s i d e r a m e n d i n g RSIA as FRA has requested. Specifically, Congress should consider granting FRA the authority to extend the deadline on certain rail lines on a case-by-case basis, g r a n t p r o v i s i o n a l c e r t i f i c a t i o n o f P T C systems, and approve the use of alterna- tive safety technologies in lieu of PTC to improve safety." Congress did not grant such authority to FRA, so our new FRA Administrator Sara Feinberg finds herself t r a n s p o r t t i p s c o n t i n u e d November 2015 www.coalage.com 21 Progress Chart for Major Railroads (As of August 7, 2015) Source: Federal Railroad Administration

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of Coal Age - NOV 2015