JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX Transportation on Friday filed an amended version of its application to acquire Pan Am Railways with the Surface Transportation Board, addressing additional information requested by the regulatory body.
The STB had rejected the initial application in May, saying it failed to “include all of the information needed” for the required market analysis [see “Federal regulators reject CSX-Pan Am merger application …,” Trains News Wire, May 26, 2021].
The new 1,262-page filing includes a 25-page market analysis among a dozen new or updated elements, as well a 60-page operating plan. The public version of the filing, available here, is significantly redacted, removing details including all financial figures.
In a press release, CSX CEO Jim Foote stressed the acquisition’s ability to create “seamless single-line service” which will “provide substantial benefits to shippers with low-cost, environmentally friendly rail service with truck-like reliability.” In his statement that is part of the new STB filing, Foote says CSX “will invest significantly in rail infrastructure where [Pan Am] lacked the resources to do so.”
Foote’s statement also says “CSX commits to maintain or improve existing service” by Amtak across the Pan Am system and “knows how to do so,” citing the railroad’s 93.6% on-time performance with Amtrak trains in 2020. An Amtrak filing in May indicated the passenger railroad’s concerns over the CSX-Pan Am, with CEO Bill Flynn subsequently issuing a statement opposing the acquisition, saying it would”adversely impact the performance of Amtrak trains and threaten future growth opportunities’ [see “Amtrak CEO voices opposition …,” News Wire, June 4, 2021].
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