WASHINGTON — Union Pacific is seeking more time to address one aspect of the Surface Transportation Board case regarding issues with on-time performance of the Sunset Limited.
In a filing earlier this week, the railroad requested a 90-day extension to address “narrative explanations of the root cases” of specific delays of 90 minutes or more requested by the board in a Feb. 13, 2024 decision [see “STB seeks operating details …,” Trains News Wire, Feb. 13, 2024], saying developing that information is “a time-consuming and resource-intensive process. The board listed 44 such instances between Nov. 10, 2021, and Nov. 29, 2022, in the February decision, 43 of them involving UP.
“The root causes analyses require Union Pacific to mine an extraordinarily large amount of data,” the filing explains. “For example, Union Pacific collects and retains data granular enough to identify requests to line signals, how signals were lined, and when trains passed control points. It collects and retains information regarding incidents that impacted locomotives, rail cars, tracks, sidings, signals, and crew hours of service. In the days immediately following a particular event, this information is readily available. With the passage of time, however, compiling and connecting the data to ascertain the root cause of delays becomes much more difficult.”
The railroad indicates, however, that it will be able to respond to other portions of the STB decision by the original April 15 deadline.
Amtrak, in a response filed Friday, took no position on UP’s request, but proposed that the board order all parties to submit the data and other materials used for root-cause analyses within two weeks of submission of those analyses. A BNSF Railway filing said it did not oppose the request as long as any deadline set applies equally to all parties.
The Sunset Limited case dates to December 2022, when Amtrak asked the STB to investigate what it called the “abysmal” timekeeping of the triweekly train between Los Angeles and New Orleans [see “Amtrak asks federal regulators to investigate …,” News Wire, Dec. 9, 2022]. It is the first complaint of its kind under a provision of the Passsenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008, and as such is requiring the board to essentially develop the processes and procedures to be used for future cases, one reason for its cautious pace.
More legal BS from a once – revered American corporation whose management has lost sight of its mission in its insatiable quest for short – term profits.
Just RRs? No way. Maybe a law to include OTR trucks, waterways, airlines, & RRs might work but the litigation over such a law? Long drawn out.
“narrative explanations of the root cases” That is lawyer speak for “we need to find a way to explain it where its not our fault, when it really is”
Having worked on various telecom aspects on the Sunset double track project prior to my 2010 retirement, I thought all those Amtrak delays were history. Guess they need a third track. lol
The causes of poor punctuality of the ‘Sunset Limited’ is stirring us in the face! Union Pacific is trying to dither the investigation which should be simple to solve.