STB Launches Office of Passenger Rail.

The Surface Transportation Board (STB) on Oct. 1 established the Office of Passenger Rail, responsible for investigating and analyzing issues regarding Amtrak on-time performance (OTP).

“Section 213 of the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 (PRIIA) authorizes, and on eligible complaints requires, the STB to investigate the causes of substandard passenger rail OTP; to identify mitigating measures; and, under specified conditions, to prescribe relief,” STB reported on Oct. 13.

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) on Nov. 16, 2020, adopted a final rule establishing metrics and minimum standards for measuring the performance and service quality of Amtrak’s intercity passenger trains—following nearly 10 years of a contentious battle involving Amtrak and its host freight railroads that twice reached the U.S. Supreme Court. (FRA was charged to do so under PRIIA.)

STB said that FRA, in conjunction with Amtrak, “promulgated a ‘Customer OTP’ metric to measure passenger rail OTP, with a minimum standard of 80% of passenger arrivals at stations to occur within 15 minutes of the scheduled time for any two consecutive calendar quarters.” This standard began to apply on July 1, 2021.

Complaints may be brought by Amtrak, by an entity for which Amtrak operates intercity passenger rail service, by an intercity passenger rail operator, or by a host freight railroad.'>>>

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