(The following appeared on the CFNews13.com website on September 23, 2009.)
BOSTON —Massachusetts Lt. Gov. Timothy Murray announced a final agreement with CSX railroad Wednesday, enabling the state to move forward with expanded plans for passenger rail.
The sticking point apparently had been the liability clauses — one of the same sticking points in Florida’s state legislature that resulted in the Senate rejecting the SunRail agreement with CSX on the last day of the regular session last spring.
Florida officials had been monitoring the Massachusetts negotiations, and several sources closely involved in the SunRail project have told News 13 that whatever Massachusetts worked out would likely find its way into the new Florida agreement with SunRail.
According to the Massachusetts governor’s Web site, the new liability agreement will operate “in a way that provides incentives for both parties to operate safely.”
Specifically:
“CSXT will contribute $500,000 to help defray the cost of the liability insurance policy the MBTA carries for the entire commuter system. Additionally, in the event an accident occurs involving a freight train and CSXT is clearly at fault because of willful misconduct, the rail road will be responsible to pay the deductible on that policy, up to a maximum of $7.5 million per accident.”
The original Florida agreement with CSX was a strict no fault liability, and in accidents involving a freight train, CSX assumed no responsibility for anything other than its own trains and personnel.
That was cited as a main objection by a number of state senators in the spring who voted against the SunRail agreement.
Supporters are hoping to renegotiate with CSX and bring a new deal to the legislature, perhaps as early as December, if there is a special legislative session.