(The office of New York Congressman Brian Higgins issued the following press release on May 7, 2009.)
BUFFALO, N.Y. — In a letter to the Active Chairman of the Surface Transportation Board (STB), Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-27) is asking the national agency to reopen the related docket since layoffs at Buffalo’s Frontier Yard are in violation of the agreement which allowed CSX and Norfolk Southern to acquire Conrail’s assets.
“As a condition of the merger agreement, CSX pledged to invest substantially in facilities and jobs in the Buffalo region however with the news this week of 132 layoffs and possibly more on the way that clearly isn’t happening,” said Congressman Higgins. “CSX has an ethical and contractual obligation to keep these jobs in Buffalo and we want to see them hold up their end of the bargain.”
On July 20, 1998, the Surface Transportation Board (STB) issued a decision (FD-33388) which allowed CSX and Norfolk Southern to acquire Conrail’s assets. In the context of the 1998 decision, the board indicated that it would hold CSX to its commitments to Buffalo in this matter:
“We will hold CSX to all of its representations related to the Buffalo area, most notably those regarding its plans for investment in new connections and upgraded facilities in the Buffalo area, including: (1) upgrading Conrail’s existing computer technology and fueling facilities at Buffalo; (2) maintaining or increasing current employment levels in the Buffalo area… and (5) investing substantial funds in network improvements to reduce shipping time and enhance service reliability for rail shippers in the Greater Buffalo area[1],” said the Surface Transportation Board at the time.
The STB is a regulatory agency created by Congress in 1995. The independent agency has jurisdiction over railroad rate and service issues and rail restructuring transactions as well as other transportation issues.