WASHINGTON — The U.S. Justice Department is taking Norfolk Southern to court, alleging the railroad’s delays of Amtrak’s Crescent violate federal law.
The civil complaint, filed today (July 30) in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, alleges NS regularly fails to give the Crescent preference over freight trains as required by statute, leading to delays that harm and inconvenience passengers, impede passenger rail transportation, and negatively affect Amtrak’s financial performance. The New York-New Orleans Crescent operates on NS-owned or managed track between Alexandria, Va., and New Orleans, including the state-owned North Carolina Railroad segment between Danville and Greensboro, N.C. In all, NS controls 1,140 of the Crescent’s 1,377 route-miles.
In 2023, the Justice Department said, only 24% of southbound Crescent trains traveling on NS-controlled track arrived at their destination on time.
The 16-page complaint includes examples of significant delays, including a Nov. 25, 2022, instance when the northbound Crescent was held in a siding for 1 hour, 11 minutes to allow three freight trains to pass, and a Feb. 17, 2024, case where the northbound train was delayed for 2 hours when it was sent into sidings on three occasions for meets with four freight trains. It notes that because NS regularly operates freight trains too long for the sidings on the route, the Crescent is frequently delayed when it is forced to follow the slower-moving freights.
“Americans should not experience travel delays because rail carriers break the law,” Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said in the press release announcing the suit. “Our action today alleges that Norfolk Southern violates federal law by failing to give the legally required preference to Amtrak passenger trains over freight trains. The Justice Department will continue to protect travelers by ensuring that rail carriers fulfill their legal obligations.”
Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner said in a statement that the company appreciates that the Justice Department “is taking steps to enforce in federal court the long-standing federal law requiring that intercity passenger trains receive preference over freight traffic when we operate over shared rail lines. This critical action by the DOJ will help ensure our customers arrive at their destinations on time.”
Norfolk Southern spokesman Tom Crosson said in a statement to Trains News Wire that the railroad is “committed to complying with the law, working together, and honoring our commitments. Over the past several months with Amtrak, we have focused on the on-time performance of the Crescent passenger train. We hope to resolve these concerns and continue to make progress together.”
The move by the Justice Department is in marked contrast to the other ongoing action regarding on-time performance for an Amtrak long-distance train. In that case, regarding the New Orleans-Los Angeles Sunset Limited, Amtrak requested an investigation by the Surface Transportation Board into the train’s on-time performance in December 2022, a first-of-its-kind complaint under a provision of the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 [see “Amtrak asks federal regulators to investigate …,” Trains News Wire, Dec. 9, 2022]. But that complaint is moving at an extremely slow pace, at least in part because the STB is essentially inventing its procedures for dealing with such matters. As of July 24, there have been some 119 filings and decisions in the Sunset case, and the railroads involved have received a number of deadline extensions in the board’s fact-finding process.
The Justice Department has taken a similar action before, but it has been some time: In December 1979, it sued Southern Pacific for favoring freights over the Sunset Limited in a 362-mile stretch between New Orleans and Houston. While that case went to trial, a consent order issued after the suit was filed led to enough improvement in performance that the case was eventually dismissed without a final ruling by the judge [see “The battle of the Sunset Limited,” Trains Magazine, March 1998].
So the evil capitalistic tax paying railroad is holding up the peoples trains on its own private property while the money losing tax dependent government run operation turns to lawfare to force the privately owned railroad at gunpoint to delay its customers trains for what usually is a bus load of passengers who if they were concerned with their time could have flown or driven much faster.
Quite an attitude to have. Taking the train could be faster if we invested in higher-speed rail. Federal law requires NS to give priority to passenger trains. Plus, taking the train is more environmentally friendly and more comfortable than a bus. Also, the trains usually have multiple bus loads.
All of this wouldn’t be a problem if the freight railroads invested in infrastructure instead of profit or at least run trains that could fit into sidings.
Besides sidings that are too short, dispatching is a joke.
NS has a siding in Pearl River, LA that’s approximately 6,000 feet long. A few weeks back they had multiple 180 to 200 car trains meet here. Two southbound and one northbound. Had to sea-saw first southbound around the north bound train. Back the northbound train south of siding and sea-saw second south bound train through siding. If they would have kept the north bound in siding at Slidell, LA (which is almost 10,000 feet long) it would have been easier.
Not one to get the Federal Government involved, but some form of legislation to the extent that railroads can’t run trains longer than the shortest siding along the line. You want to run 8,000 foot trains, shortest siding must be long enough for that train. Want to run 12,000 or 15,000 foot trains, sidings need to be that long. Simple.
Amtrak’s ‘Crescent’ (neè Southern Railway’s ‘Southern Crescent’, neè ‘Southerner’) was one of two former darlings and streamliners of the Southern Railway System. The other train was the original ‘Crescent’ that was all-Pullman between New York and Atlanta with coaches added between Atlanta and New Orleans on the Atlanta & West Point to Montgomery, and then the Louisville & Nashville Railroad.
The ‘Crescent’ was combined with the New York – New Orleans ‘Southerner’ when truncated to Atlanta by the connecting lines and renamed the ‘Southern Crescent’ until 1979 when Amtrak took over operation. The train reverted to the ‘Crescent’.
Norfolk Southern’s current administration is unaware of the rich history and former prestige of the ‘Crescent’ under predecessor Southern Railway. How ironic for the ‘Crescent’ to be treated like an unwanted secondary train.
Great post, Penelope. You could also mention that Southern Railway CEO, the late W. Graham Claytor, personally watched over his train until the Amtrak takeover. A frequent rider himself, he noticed everything and demanded correction.
Of course we will forget that the very same Mr. Claytor, when he was in SR’s legal department earlier, played every card he had (often off the bottom of the deck) to downgrade and discontinue SR’s secondary trains.
Even in the Amtrak era, SR dicontinued a number of trains that it had kept after May 1, 1971. Until only the Crescent remained.
What should happen…NS pays fine and agrees to lengthen all sidings to 25,000 ft or run shorter trains fitting into every siding, and also agrees to fines each time 19/20 are more than 15 mins late at each station. What probably will happen…NS pays fine and agrees to run 19/20 with 30 mins of schedule, then renegotiates longer schedule with Amtrak like they did a few years ago.
How about the government stop complaining, and build, operate, and maintain its own railroad?
If only there weren’t politicians in Washington who would prevent that…
Plus, Amtrak is that. It’s just we aren’t funding it…
The NC owned track segment 19/20 operate over is from Greensboro to Charlotte.
I witnessed this RR BS the other night on one of those web cams the Crescent was left sitting at a signal around the Atlanta area for over 20 min before a freight came & crossed over in front of it. The Crescent could have been well on its way before that train if it had been given a green light from the start. I hope they nail NS to the cross!
More than likely that freight was a CSX crossing Howell CP. That happens a lot!
OK, I’m confused.
According to the article:
“The New York-Atlanta Crescent operates on NS-owned or managed track between Alexandria, Va., and New Orleans […]”
So if the Crescent is going between NY and Atlanta by way of New Orleans, no wonder it’s always late.
(or was that a misprint?)
About time. NS’s delays south of ATL to NOL has been a real thorn for OTP. Of course, today 20/30th is running OT so far to TCL and is already close to BHM at least 30 minutes early. Now 19/ 29TH is late vehicles but not because of NS. Something that never have observed is 19 made up 30 minutes from ATN to BHM.
That section has almost every day caused delays to both 19 & 20.
Now South of the Lake will leave to others.
There goes the O.R.
About time.
Yep, well overdue.
Better late than never!
Dr. Güntürk Üstün