FOR RELEASE
Contact: Janie Sheng (202) 245-0221
04/08/2009 (Wednesday)
No. 09-12


FedRelay 1 (800) 877-8339
www.stb.gov
SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD RELEASES SUPPLEMENTAL REPORT TO ITS 2008 INDEPENDENT STUDY OF COMPETITION IN THE FREIGHT-RAIL INDUSTRY & SEEKS PUBLIC COMMENT


The Surface Transportation Board today announced that Christensen Associates, a
Madison, Wisconsin-headquartered economic consulting firm, has completed A Supplemental Report to the U.S. Surface Transportation Board on Capacity and Infrastructure Investment ("Report"). The Report augments the findings of Christensen Associates' November 2008 independent study entitled A Study of Competition in the U.S. Freight Railroad Industry and Analysis of Proposals that Might Enhance Competition ("Study").



The Report looks at different measures of railroad capacity and analyzes how that capacity is affected by anticipated changes in the demand for rail services and the productivity of rail assets. As with Christensen Associates' 2008 Study, the Board anticipates that the Report's analysis will be of great interest to policymakers and stakeholders involved in interstate freight commerce.



The Report was undertaken according to a contract the Board awarded to Christensen Associates in August 2008. Christensen Associates was engaged to analyze the long-term forecasts of rail demand that serve as the basis of railroad investment projections.



The Report may be accessed via the Board's Web site, at http://www.stb.dot.gov," by clicking the "E-LIBRARY" button on the home page, then by choosing "Studies" on the dropdown that will appear, or via this link. The Report also is available via the Christensen Associates Web site, at "http://www.LRCA.com."



The Board also announced today that it is seeking written public comments on the Report, due May 8, 2009, with written replies due by May 28, 2009. The Board's decision requesting public comment on the Report was issued today, April 8, 2009, in Supplemental Report on Capacity and Infrastructure Investment, STB Ex Parte No. 680 (Sub-No. 1). That decision is available for viewing and downloading via the Board's Web site, at http://www.stb.dot.gov," under "E-LIBRARY," then under "Decisions & Notices," beneath the date "04/08/09."

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