The US Justice Department (DoJ) has taken the drastic step of filing a civil complaint against private railroad manager and operator Norfolk Southern alleging it has broken the law and delayed passenger services.
In a filing to the US District Court in Washington, DC the DoJ said Norfolk Southern ignored laws that require its line controllers on the Crescent Route from New York City to New Orleans to prioritise passenger services over freight services.
Norfolk Southern owns 1,140 miles of the 1,377-mile route and manages dispatches on its segment, including Amtrak passenger services and the company’s own NS freight services.
According to Amtrak records, 266,000 passengers used the Crescent Route in 2023, but only 24% of the services they used arrived at their destinations on time.
The court filing alleges that by failing to abide by the law, Norfolk Southern causes “widespread delays that harm and inconvenience train passengers, negatively affect Amtrak’s financial performance, and impede passenger rail transportation.”
The DoJ Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch included examples in the preliminary filing, which will be assessed by the court before a potential trial.
“1 January, an Amtrak train 10 miles outside of New Orleans was delayed for nearly an hour when Norfolk Southern dispatchers required it to travel behind a slow-moving freight train. On another occasion, Norfolk Southern dispatchers forced an Amtrak train to wait over an hour while allowing three separate freight trains to pass. In many cases, Norfolk Southern runs freight trains along the Crescent Route that, due to track limitations, are so long they cannot move to the side for passenger trains to pass them,” the document explained.
In response to the lawsuit, Norfolk Southern said it is "committed" to complying with federal law, and said it hoped to find a resolution with Amtrak.
"Thanks to our collaborative relationship with Amtrak and our state partners, Norfolk Southern has taken a leading role in the industry to expand passenger rail service. We are committed to complying with the law, working together, and honouring our commitments."
"Over the past several months with Amtrak, we have focused on the on-time performance of the Crescent passenger train. We hope to resolve these concerns and continue to make progress together."
Attorney General Merrick Garland and Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg, two well-known figures in the Biden administration, directed their respective government departments to build the case.
“Americans should not experience travel delays because rail carriers break the law. Our action today alleges that Norfolk Southern violates federal law by failing to give the legally required preference to Amtrak passenger trains over freight trains,” Garland said.
“The Justice Department will continue to protect travellers by ensuring that rail carriers fulfil their legal obligations.”
“For half a century, federal law has required freight rail companies to give Amtrak passenger rail service preference on their tracks — yet compliance with this important law has been uneven at best,” Buttigieg added.
“We will continue to engage the railroad industry and work with Amtrak to ensure that freight railroads comply with their legal obligations and that Amtrak customers are not subjected to unacceptable, unnecessary, and unlawful delays,” he said.
