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May 22, 2000 9:25 AM, EDT

Adverse community reaction and environmental impact should be addressed in considering future rail merger cases, the Secretary of Transportation Rodney E. Slater told the Surface Transportation Board.

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In filing Department of Transportation’s initial views with the STB on May 16, Slater said the experiences of the 1996 merger of Union Pacific and Southern Pacific as well as the 1999 breakup of Conrail showed that current board procedures did not address those considerations.

On March 17, the STB decided to “stay” proceedings on a proposed merger of the Canadian National and the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe railroads, while it came up with new rules to govern such transactions.

Slater said the needs of the rail industry should not be ignored, but that additional protections for shippers, such as reciprocal switching, should also be considered. He also was joined in urging that barriers to access be lowered in statements issued May 17 by the Chemical Manufacturers Association and the American Plastics Council.

Slater urged the STB to restrict its authority to override collective bargaining agreements.