Surface Transportation Board Demands More Detailed Rail Service Reports
The Surface Transportation Board said it is ordering all major freight railroads to submit more detailed service reports starting later this month in the wake of ongoing delays.
The first reports are due Oct. 22 as regulators seek what was described in a statement as “a better real-time understanding of the current rail service issues” in response to concerns raised at a hearing last month.
“Many rail shippers expressed concerns about the lack of publicly available rail service metrics and requested access to certain performance data from the railroads to help them better understand the scope, magnitude, and impact of the current service problems,” STB said.
Additional information that is being required includes detailed performance data on service levels in Chicago, the nation’s largest rail hub and a focal point for the delays.
In addition, STB wants more information about what types of freight are being delayed, detailed reports on grain car loadings, details on shipments that don’t move for five days or more and coal delays by producing region.
Nearly two decades ago, freight railroads began reporting weekly metrics that included average train speeds for five types of trains and freight car dwell time in major terminals.
Those reports also began in response to a spate of delays.
