American Short Line

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American Short Line Regional Railroad
Association


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SCORT 2003Buffalo, NY

• WASHINGTON SHORT LINE REPORT
• AMERICAN SHORT LINE AND REGIONAL RAILROAD
  ASSOCIATIOIN

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Heavy Axle Loads and North American Railroad
Network

• North American Class 1 Railroads are moving to
  heavier cars and higher axle loads
• Double stack cars operate at up to 39 ton axle
  loads
• Bulk commodity cars operate at 286,000 lb. gross
  weight on rails
• 36 ton axle loads
• Significant operating savings for
• Class 1 railroads
• Shippers
• Serious potential impact for Short Lines
  Regional Railroads
• Safety
• Maintenance of Way costs

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Effects of Heavy Axle Load Traffic on Short Lines
Regionals

• Increase in surface degradation at joints,
  particularly cross-level
• Need for ongoing monitoring program
• Increased degradation at turnouts
• Increase in surface spalling of rail
• Potential for increased rail defects,
  particularly at joints
• Potential for broken rail derailments
• Need for ongoing monitoring program
• Increase in tie degradation at joints
• Potential capital costs for bridges
• Particularly bridges marginal at 263,000 lb.

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Findings of the Analysis

• Component
  Action
• Rail 22 of track miles must be replaced
• Ties 43 of track miles require at least some
  ties, depending on current tie condition
• Ballast 23 of track miles require additional
  ballast surfacing will also be required when
  ballast is added
• Bridges 22 require replacement 27 require
  upgrading

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HAL Effects

• If all (100) traffic is converted to HAL cars
• Increase in rail and turnout
  replacement and maintenance
  costs 28
• Increase in tie costs 12
• Increase in surfacing costs 23
• Overall increase in maintenance costs associated
  with rails, ties, ballast, and turnouts 17
• source ZETA-TECH HAL analyses models for
  operation of 286,000 lb. HAL cars

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Conclusions Required Investment

• Component Required Total Cost Total Cost
• Investment (Sample) (Industry)
• Rail and Turnouts 75,106 356,150,175 3,754,182,
  002
• Ties 16,372 77,636,048 818,362,236
• Ballast/Surfacing 2,657 12,597,440 132,789,720
  
• Turnouts 7,882 37,377,454 393,996,056
• Total 137,253 650,847,006 6,860,583,787
• Track Mileage 4,742
  49,985

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Impact of 10,000 Tax Credit

• New York
• 1,549 miles of s. l. track x 10K 15.49
  Million
• Pennsylvania
• 2,536 miles of s.l. track x 10K 25.36
  Million

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Additional Financial Burden to States if Short
Lines Disappear

• Iowa Northern Railroad (2002)
• Hauled 52,581 truckloads of grain
• 357.1 million ton miles NOT on Iowa highways
• _at_ 5c/truck ton mile highway expense state saved
  17.85 Million
• Environmental impact
• 2,823 ton miles per gallon vs. 154 for trucks

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Growing Congressional Support for H.R. 876

• 132 Co-sponsors in House
• 15 Co-sponsors on Ways Means Committee
• MORE NEEDED

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American Short Line Regional Railroad
Association