II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4959 

To amend section 11101 of title 49, United States Code, to ensure that 

rail carriers provide transportation or service in a manner that fulfills 

the shipper’s reasonable service requirements. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 27, 2022 

Ms. BALDWIN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To amend section 11101 of title 49, United States Code, 

to ensure that rail carriers provide transportation or 

service in a manner that fulfills the shipper’s reasonable 

service requirements. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Reliable Rail Service 

5 Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. COMMON CARRIER TRANSPORTATION. 

7 Section 11101 of title 49, United States Code, is 

8 amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a)— 

2 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(a)’’; 

3 (B) by inserting ‘‘, in a manner that meets 

4 the shipper’s need for timely, efficient, and reli5 able rail service and fulfills the shipper’s rea6 sonable service requirements’’ after ‘‘on reason7 able request’’; and 

8 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(2) In determining whether a rail carrier has vio10 lated this section with respect to the provision of reason11 able transportation service and the ability of the rail car12 rier to meet its obligations under this section, the Board 

13 shall consider— 

14 ‘‘(A) the impacts of reductions or changes in 

15 the frequency of transportation or service, and the 

16 availability and maintenance of reasonable local serv17 ice schedules and delivery windows, on the provision 

18 of reasonable transportation service; 

19 ‘‘(B) the impacts of reductions in employment 

20 levels, including — 

21 ‘‘(i) reductions in clerical, customer serv22 ice, maintenance, dispatch and train and engine 

23 service employees; 

24 ‘‘(ii) reductions or changes in train or yard 

25 crew availability; and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) the consolidation or shifting of crews 

2 across or within service territories; 

3 ‘‘(C) the impacts of reductions in equipment 

4 and the availability of equipment, maintenance of 

5 equipment or railroad infrastructure, lines and 

6 yards, or shifting of equipment across or within 

7 service territories or customer and commodity 

8 groups; 

9 ‘‘(D) whether the service reasonably meets the 

10 local operational and service requirements of the 

11 person requesting transportation or service that are 

12 consistent with the person’s needs and requirements 

13 for the efficient and reliable receipt, transportation 

14 and delivery of property; 

15 ‘‘(E) the transportation needs or circumstances 

16 of the person requesting transportation or service 

17 based upon previous service experience and taking 

18 into account any physical or operational limitations 

19 or restrictions at a facility or location; 

20 ‘‘(F) the commitment of the person requesting 

21 transportation or service of equipment or other re22 sources to support the transportation or service; 

23 ‘‘(G) whether any conditions imposed by the 

24 rail carrier as requirements for service are required 

25 to meet the local service requirements of the person 


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1 requesting service or permit the rail carrier to re2 cover its variable cost of providing the requested 

3 transportation or service; and 

4 ‘‘(H) how the carrier is handling equipment 

5 owned by others.’’; 

6 (2) in subsection (b), in the matter preceding 

7 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘terms.’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘terms, including reasonable transit or cycle times 

9 and other service standards, as requested, consistent 

10 with the needs and requirements of the person on 

11 whose behalf the request is made for the efficient 

12 and reliable receipt, transportation, and delivery of 

13 property.’’; and 

14 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(g) Any proceeding initiated to consider a rail car16 rier’s alleged violation of this section shall be expedited 

17 by the Board, and completed not later than 180 days after 

18 the initiation of the proceeding. Any proceeding initiated 

19 to obtain service terms under subsection (b) shall be com20 pleted not later than 45 days after the initiation of the 

21 proceeding. 

22 ‘‘(h) The provisions under section 11701 shall apply 

23 to a determination whether a rail carrier has violated this 

24 section. In addition to the remedies provided in such sec25 tion, if the Board determines that a rail carrier has vioVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:00 Oct 06, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4959.IS S4959

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1 lated this section by failing to provide transportation or 

2 service on reasonable request, the Board shall prescribe 

3 reasonable transit or cycle times or other service standards 

4 to be established to deliver property consistent with the 

5 needs and requirements of the person making the re6 quest.’’. 

Æ 


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