Happening Now
STB Defers To Federal Court In UP-Metra Dispute
September 25, 2020
After a series of extensions of a 10-year commuter-services operation agreement that expired on August 31, UP wants a federal court to declare that it no longer has a common-carrier obligation to continue service. Chicago commuter agency Metra asked the Surface Transportation Board to intervene, but STB says it will defer to the court.
The Surface Transportation Board today declined to intervene in a dispute between Union Pacific and Chicago’s Metra over UP’s commuter-service agreement with the transit agency, deferring instead to a federal district court in Chicago which is also hearing the case.
That court denied Metra’s motion last month for a preliminary injunction, which would have temporarily blocked UP from dropping the service while sending the matter to the STB. Because the court denied that motion, STB says it will close its own proceeding on the dispute.
“Here, the issues raised in Metra’s petition are already pending before the district court, which has concurrent jurisdiction over this matter (including authority to order injunctive relief if warranted), and which denied Metra’s motion to refer the issues to the Board,” STB wrote in its decision. “In these circumstances, the Board will deny Metra’s request for a declaratory order and decline to institute a proceeding, and consequently will also deny the petition for preliminary injunction.”
Rail Passengers Association was one of a coalition of groups filing comments to STB supporting Metra’s petition.
STB Member Martin Oberman recused himself from the decision, since he had been on Metra’s Board from 2013 until he began his STB service in January of 2019.
"It is an honor to be recognized by the Rail Passengers Association for my efforts to strengthen and expand America’s passenger rail. Golden spikes were once used by railroads to mark the completion of important rail projects, so I am truly grateful to receive the Golden Spike Award as a way to mark the end of a career that I’ve spent fighting to invest in our country’s rail system. As Chair of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, it has been my priority to bolster funding for Amtrak, increase and expand routes, look to the future by supporting high-speed projects, and improve safety, culminating in $66 billion in new funding in the Bipartisan infrastructure Law."
Representative Peter DeFazio (OR-04)
March 30, 2022, on receiving the Association's Golden Spike Award for his years of dedication and commitment to passenger rail.
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