Note: There will be no Views & News next week due to the holiday. The next issue will be Dec. 4.
$6.87M grant to fund railroad research center at Penn State
Railroad members! If you want to be featured in this section, please email us the link. You can also tag us (@ASLRRA) in your social media posts. Interested in seeing your railroad showcased in your local newspaper? Contact Amy Krouse for assistance.
ASLRRA will offer a full slate of important industry training seminars in 2025, starting with the popular Drug and Alcohol (Part 219) Training Seminar and Short Line DER Roundtable in February, followed by the General Code of Operating Rules (GCOR) in March.
Registration is now open for these two ASLRRA training seminars. Both will take place in San Diego, California at the Embassy Suites by Hilton San Diego La Jolla.
The drug and alcohol training seminar will be held Feb. 25 to 27. ASLRRA’s JR Gelnar and Federal Railroad Administration Drug and Alcohol Program Specialist Melissa Van Dermeir will provide an in-depth review of the rules and requirements for railroads and contractors under Part 219. The third day of the event, the Short Line DER Roundtable, will feature presentations and discussions specifically designed for short line railroad Designated Employer Representatives (DERs).
Then, from March 11 to 13, Gelnar and Iowa Northern Railway Company Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Mark Vaughn will present the General Code of Operating Rules (GCOR) training seminar. The seminar is intended for railroads that have adopted the GCOR as their operating rules and may be used to meet operating rules training as required by 49 CFR Part 240, 242 and 214 Subpart C.
Space in both seminars is limited, so interested individuals are encouraged to register early to secure their spot. Dates and locations for additional training seminars will be announced in the future. Click here to review the list of all seminars planned for the upcoming year.
To help employees of small railroads attend industry training, ASLRRA offers the Doug Golden Scholarship and the Jake Jacobson Memorial Scholarship. Both scholarships are meant for employees of railroads earning $10 million or less in annual revenue. The Doug Golden Scholarship can be applied to costs incurred for registration, travel and lodging for certain industry-specific training, including ASLRRA’s events. The Jake Jacobson Memorial Scholarship covers registration fees for an ASLRRA-hosted training seminar. Follow the links above for more information and to access an application form.
ASLRRA has submitted requests for a comment deadline extension in response to the several notices of proposed rulemaking (NPRMs) recently published by federal agencies.
Last week, ASLRRA reported on the six NPRMs and one notice of information collection from the FRA, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), of which four have comment periods that close in December.
As ASLRRA noted in last week’s article, the Association filed an extension request for three of the FRA’s NPRMs on Nov. 13. ASLRRA says in its request that “each of the three NPRMs requires review and consideration made virtually impossible given the compressed time period and volume of rules proposed by FRA.” As a result, ASLRRA requests an additional 60 days for public comments for each of the NPRMs.
ASLRRA also requested a new comment deadline of March 31 for the OSHA proposed rule governing workplace heat injury and illness prevention. In its request, the Association points out that the comprehensive nature of the proposed rule, the length of the NPRM itself and the volume of supplementary material included with it necessitates additional time for ASLRRA to prepare a thorough response.
Two November news releases from the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) discuss Medicare. The RRB’s Question and Answer (Q&A) column provides basic information on the Medicare program for railroad workers, while a separate release discusses an increase to Part B premiums and deductibles in 2025.
The Q&A explains which individuals are eligible for Medicare coverage, how to enroll in Medicare and what costs are associated with Medicare Part A, hospital insurance, and Medicare Part B, medical insurance. The Q&A also addresses prescription drug coverage under Medicare and beneficiaries’ choices for receiving health care services.
The second press release discusses increases to Medicare Part B premiums and deductibles that will go into effect in 2025. The standard monthly premium in 2025 will be $185, while the annual deductible will be $257. Some beneficiaries will pay less than the increased premium amount due to a law concerning increases for current enrollees, while certain beneficiaries will pay higher premiums based on their modified adjusted gross income. A table in the press release summarizes 2025 Part B premiums for beneficiaries at various income levels.
Last week, ASLRRA submitted a reply brief in the case concerning the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) two-person crew size rule.
The FRA filed a response on Sept. 24 to ASLRRA’s original petition, and ASLRRA’s reply brief addresses that response. The reply brief rebuts three arguments made by the FRA, saying the FRA mischaracterizes and then evades the petitioners’ objection to the alerter requirement for Class II and III carriers with one-person crews; the FRA’s argument concerning certain reporting requirements is not supported by the record; and the petitioners did not waive their right to challenge the arbitrariness of the rule’s two-year legacy provision.
A group of four Democratic representatives from California have sent a letter to the California Air Resources Board (CARB) expressing their concern about the agency’s In-Use Locomotive Regulation and the “unintended consequences of regulation’s otherwise well-intentioned goal.”
Representatives John Garamendi, Salud Carbajal, J. Luis Correa and Jim Costa write that while the aim of CARB to hasten the decarbonization of the rail industry in California is important, the rule itself threatens to cause more shippers to shift their freight to less efficient, higher emission modes like trucks. As such, CARB could “inadvertently” increase pollution, traffic congestion and road damage in the near term as its rule would hinder use of rail, which the lawmakers point out is “the most fuel-efficient means of transporting freight over land.”
The congressmen also say that the rule requires railroads to procure zero-emission locomotives that are not currently commercially available. Forcing short line railroads in the state “to make the cost-prohibitive investments in locomotive technology that either does not yet exist or will not be commercially available or affordable when the regulation takes effect in 2030” would put many of them out of business.
The letter urges CARB to “consider improving this new regulation” in a way that achieves its clean-energy goals.
Representatives Mike Kelly (R-Penn.) and Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) have sent an electronic Dear Colleague letter to members of the U.S. House of Representatives to ask them to co-sponsor the Short Line Railroad Tax Credit Modernization Act, H.R. 9522.
The letter points out that the current version of the short line tax credit, also known as the 45G tax credit, has not adjusted the per-mile credit cap of $3,500 for inflation, nor are any tracks acquired since 2015 eligible for the credit.
The pending bill would increase the per-mile credit cap to $6,100 and provide an inflation adjustment mechanism for the cap amount. The bill would also allow track owned or leased by 2024 to be eligible for the credit.
Senators Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) introduced a companion 45G modernization bill in the Senate on the same day the House bill was introduced. ASLRRA’s government affairs team continues to work to educate elected officials about the 45G tax credit and encourage co-sponsors of the bill.
Former Wisconsin representative Sean Duffy has been nominated to serve as the next secretary of transportation. ASLRRA welcomes the announcement, as Duffy has been a cosponsor of 45G tax credit bills in each of the five sessions of Congress in which he served. His work representing Wisconsin has helped him understand the importance of short line freight railroads to shippers in small town and rural America.
In Congress, Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) was elected Senate majority leader. He has a solid understanding of freight rail issues, having previously served as South Dakota’s state rail director before being elected to the Senate. With Thune elected majority leader, it is likely that Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) will become chair of the Senate Commerce Committee.
Current Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg will testify on Wednesday before the Senate Appropriations Committee about disaster funding needs, including an $8 billion request by President Joe Biden for the U.S. Department of Transportation to build, repair and reconstruct federal-aid highways, bridges and federally owned roads that have been seriously damaged by natural disasters or experienced catastrophic failures due to external causes. ASLRRA will monitor the hearing and has been engaged with both the Senate and House Appropriations Committees on the impact such disasters have had on the short line freight railroad industry.
TraConcepts, LLC, based in Sarasota, Florida, is a consulting firm offering a wide range of business services to the rail construction community. Expertise includes business development & marketing services, contract & project management, diversity vetting, sales team support, and CRM implementation. The firm, D/W/S/MBE certified in 23 states, is led by President Maggie Vuono, who can be reached on (412) 925-0828.
Kentucky will award $7.5 million in grant funding for eight rail infrastructure projects in the state, all of which will be completed by ASLRRA-member railroads. Funding for these projects comes from the new Kentucky Short Line Infrastructure Preservation (KSLIP) Program, which was established in the state’s most recent budget.
ASLRRA member parent company R. J. Corman Railroad Group will receive $1.5 million for two projects, one each on its Central Kentucky Line and Memphis Line, helping fund construction of a new transload yard, rehabilitation of mainline track and more.
Transkentucky Transportation Railroad and the Paducah & Louisville Railway will also receive grants for two projects each, which will help fund crosstie replacement, rail yard improvements, new track and siding construction and general maintenance.
Two other railroads, Tennken Railroad Company and Louisville & Indiana Railroad, will complete a project each with their respective grant awards. Tennken Railroad Company will replace over a mile of worn and undersized rail, while Louisville & Indiana Railroad will upgrade its existing 900 mHz network data radios to improve communications security and capabilities.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation’s Rail Division is also awarding funding to local short lines through the Freight Rail & Rail Crossing Safety Improvement (FRRCSI) program. Nearly $13 million will go to 11 short line railroads – all ASLRRA members – and two state ports.
Funding from the FRRCSI program will help short lines upgrade over 10 miles of railroad corridor, improve 16 rail bridges and enable increased freight rail traffic on the state rail network. ASLRRA members receiving grants are:
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) announced grant awards under the Port Infrastructure Development Program. Some awards will go to projects with a rail component.
According to a MARAD press release, the grants will support projects that will “strengthen supply chain reliability, speed up the movement of goods, reduce the costs of everyday items, and lower carbon emissions.”
Of the 31 projects receiving awards, there are at least three that involve rail infrastructure. At the New Haven Terminal in New Haven, Connecticut, grant funding will add two new railyards and over a mile of new track. At the Iroquois Landing Terminal in Chicago, Illinois, part of a landing dock project includes construction of about 1,700 feet of new rail spur. And a new rail yard and transload facility will be built within the Mount Vernon Port in Mount Vernon, Indiana.
ASLRRA member parent company OmniTRAX provides rail switching services at the Mount Vernon Port, which is also served by ASLRRA member Evansville Western Railway.
What are the latest ways Association members can engage with ASLRRA? What is ASLRRA’s most recent call-to-action? Below are some of the different types of information the Association would love to gather.
ASLRRA’s Human Resources (HR) Committee has sent a questionnaire via email to human resources, finance, administration and legal professionals at Class II and III member railroads in an effort to evaluate member interest in participating in a short line railroad industry compensation study.
The questionnaire contains additional information about the purpose of a study and how it would be conducted by a third-party. Those who received an email are encouraged to fill out the questionnaire to indicate whether their railroad would participate in an industry-wide study. Responses are due Dec. 6.
Please contact Mariel Takamura if your railroad did not receive a questionnaire link and would like one.
The Coalition Heath Plan is specifically designed for ASLRRA members looking for a solution to reduce their medical premiums and simplify the healthcare experience for their employees. As the fifth largest broker in the world with over 500 locations in North America, HUB International is well equipped to provide ASLRRA members with a vast network of benefits experts and best-in-class resources no matter where the member company is located in the US.
Partnering with HUB puts ASLRRA members at the center of a vast network of experts who provide risk services, claims management, and compliance support. Visit ASLRRA’s Member Discount Program page and select Employee Health Insurance to start saving today.
Every year at its Annual Conference, ASLRRA honors member companies for exceptional performance in different areas. The nomination period for these awards is now open, and all nominations are due Jan. 10.
This award honors industry employers who demonstrate positive policies toward U.S. veterans and who implement unique programs and practices to hire, recognize, support, and engage with veterans in the workplace and the broader community. Click here to view Veterans Engagement Award criteria, or click here to complete a nomination form.
The Business Development Awards
This award recognizes Class II and III ASLRRA-member railroads that have designed and enacted the most innovative and successful business-building initiatives in the small railroad industry. Click here to view the Business Development Award criteria, or click here to complete a nomination form.
This award goes to a Class II or III ASLRRA-member railroad that has designed and enacted an innovative and successful environmental initiative, such as reducing its own carbon footprint or helping a customer do the same. Click here to view the Environmental Award criteria, or click here to complete a nomination form.
This week, JR Gelnar and Jo Strang traveled to Fort Lauderdale, Florida to attend the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) Rail Share event. Gelnar was part of a panel providing a general session update on the Switching Operations Fatality Analysis (SOFA) Working Group and also participated in a panel discussion of training best practices for maintenance-of-way and signal and train control.
JR Gelnar speaks from the podium during a general session presentation at Rail Share.
Representatives from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) have often joined ASLRRA to present webinars discussing issues related to regulations and compliance. The below webinar recordings - and many more - are available any time in the Association’s On-Demand Webinar Library.
Visit ASLRRA’s webinar homepage and log in to view all the on-demand offerings in the Association’s webinar library.
The Short Line Safety Institute’s (SLSI) newest Hazmat Tip explains requirements for real-time train consist information under a final rule published by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).
A rule requires railroads that carry hazardous materials to generate information in electronic form regarding those hazardous materials, and provide such information to certain emergency response and law enforcement officials. SLSI’s Hazmat Tip describes key compliance dates, provides a list of information needed in the consist and explains an alternative compliance method for Class III railroads.
Hazmat Tips and Safety Tips are among the many online resources developed by SLSI experts and available at no cost to railroads. There are downloadable posters, training videos, safety document templates and more. Find these and other assets on SLSI’s website.
Class I railroad BNSF Railway has added three short line railroads to its Shortline Select program. All of the new additions are ASLRRA members.
Burlington Junction Railway, Portland & Western Railway and Texas Northwestern Railroad will join Alabama & Gulf Coast Railway as BNSF’s service partners. The arrangement enables short lines to collaborate with BNSF on economic development and growth initiatives.
In its initial announcement of the launch of Shortline Select, BNSF said that the program “combines the benefit of shortline customized service with BNSF’s vast network reach.”
Click here for a calendar of industry events.
Views & News is published by American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association.
Please contact Mariel Takamura, associate editor, with questions or comments.
