Four Largest U.S. Railroads Fail to File Adequate Service Recovery Plans

这Surface Transportation Board(STB) has issued an order directingBNSF Railway Co.（BNSF），CSX Transportation，Inc。(CSX),诺福克南部铁路(NSR), and联合太平洋铁路(UP) to correctdeficiencies in their rail service recovery plansfiled in response to a STB order issued on May 6, 2022.

STB要求这四个I级运营商制定服务恢复计划，这是由于目前渗透到铁路网络的严重服务缺陷而导致的。

STB还命令这些运营商提供有关其行动以改善服务和与客户沟通的其他信息的更多信息，以及其他详细信息，以证明其每月进展，以将其工作力量的规模增加到提供可靠的铁路服务所需的水平。

Rail service issues impact grain industry

这service recovery plans, together with the additional requested information, are crucial components of STB’s active monitoring of the nation’s freight rail industry and particularly STB’s focused efforts to ensure that the large carriers overcome the significant service challenges affecting many rail users and the public.

4月26日和4月27日，STB举行了为期两天的公开听证会关于货运铁路行业最近的重大绩效恶化。

这National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA)testified before STB on April 26, listingseveral examples of rail service failuresexperienced by grain shippers across the country.

STB还听取了BNSF，CSX，NSR的证词，以及有关服务中断的原因，程度和可能的持续时间及其补救措施的证词。

为了回应5月6日在听证会上描述的广泛问题，STB发布了一项命令，要求美国四大铁路（BNSF，CSX，NSR和UP）提交服务恢复计划，该计划将专门描述其主要补救措施并促进其关键补救措施并促进在铁路网络上的操作条件方面更为明显。

Submitted plans lack details. omit important information

不幸的是，这四个承运人提交了敷衍的计划，缺乏STB命令规定的细节水平。

这些计划通常省略了确保STB和铁路行业利益相关者所需的重要信息，即最大的铁路正在解决其缺陷问题，并具有明确且可衡量的轨迹。

Of particular concern was the fact that UP and NSR flatly refused to provide the six-month targets for achieving their performance goals explicitly required by STB’s order.

由于计划的缺点，STB发现有必要需要铁路来补充其计划，并就必须包括的关键信息提供明确的进一步指导。

计划不信心承运人对问题有严重的方法

“Freight rail is critical to our nation’s economy, and we must ensure the railroads are doing everything within their means to transport commodities that are crucial to the public welfare, such as animal feed, food ingredients, fuel products and fertilizers, and critical chemicals,” said Chairman Martin Oberman.

“我们正处于危机和铁路服务STB continues to receive reports about persistent, acute, and dramatic problems in rail transportation, disrupting critical supply chains and shutting down companies."

奥伯曼还指出，货运铁路行业目前正在努力提供足够的铁路服务，但是收到的服务恢复计划“严重缺陷，不符合STB的精神或STB命令的信件”。

"The plans simply failed to instill confidence that the carriers have a serious approach to fixing a problem caused by their own lack of preparedness to respond to external shocks and fluctuations in demand, including especially short-sighted management of labor forces and other resources," said Oberman.

“尽管铁路必须始终遵守STB订单，但特别令人不安的是，铁路未能遵守要求他们提交适当服务恢复计划的命令。”

Oberman concluded that under circumstances where service is not meeting customers’ needs, an adequate plan is not too much to ask from highly sophisticated companies with important public responsibilities.

"I had expected a better response from the carriers to STB’s previous order, and now with more explicit instructions, which should not have been needed, there will be no excuse for continued lack of compliance," he said.

-Lisa Cleaver