STB Approves CP’s Soo Line Acquisition of the Central Maine & Quebec Railway

The Surface Transportation Board  (STB) has authorized Canadian Pacific Railway subsidiary Soo Line Corporation acquisition of the Central Maine & Quebec Railway US Inc. (CMQR US) effective June 18. The CMQR US owns and operates approximately 244.2 miles of rail lines in Vermont and Maine and also has the right to operate on approximately 57.25 miles of rail line leased from the Maine Department of Transportation, for a total of approximately 301.45 route miles in the  United States.  Soo Line Corp. will also acquire 236.81 route miles of rail line from CMQR Canada and will seek authorization from the appropriate Canadian authority for that acquisition. Springfield Terminal had raised objections to the CMQR US acquisition and seeked relief through the STB  through trackage rights. The STB had rejected Springfield Terminals proposal for trackage rights between Northern Maine Junction and Brownsville Junction, Maine, noting both railroads already have an established interchange at Northern Maine Junction, with traffic moving over the CMQR  to Brownsville Junction and subsequent interchange with the Irving Railroads. Canadian Pacific has stated that it plans to spend approximately $75 million over the next three years to upgrade the CMQR US to Federal Railroad Administration Class 3 standards. The upgrading of the track will allow for more efficient operations, with faster track speeds and the correlating reduction in train crews and improved equipment utilization. standard employee protective conditions.

-via Railpace Newsmagazine

This article was posted on: May 6, 2020