31752 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 113 / Tuesday, June 12, 2001 / Notices

1The trackage rights line was authorized for

abandonment by the Board in Central Kansas

Railway, L.L.C.—Abandonment Exemption—in

Sedgwick County, KS, STB Docket No. AB–406

(Sub-No. 14X) (STB served Apr. 10, 2001). As noted

in STB Docket No. AB–406 (Sub-No. 14X), the

abandonment of the trackage rights line was subject

to the condition that CKR could not consummate

abandonment until it certified to the Board that its

relocation project near Kingman, KS, had been

completed and that any necessary rehabilitation

and maintenance had been performed on its rail

line between Wichita and Kingman via Conway

Springs, KS.

2 K&O indicates that it will shortly file a petition

for exemption to permit temporary trackage rights

operations and thus to limit the term of the trackage

rights.

3 In addition to the lines being acquired by K&O

in the STB Finance Docket No. 34030 proceeding,

K&O will also assume from CKR the ongoing work

on the relocation project near Kingman and the

rehabilitation of the rail line between Wichita and

Kingman via Conway Springs. However, K&O will

not acquire the trackage rights line.

line between milepost 312.65 and

milepost 313.38, at Wichita, KS.

K&O will acquire, by assignment from

CKR, incidental overhead trackage

rights in the State of Kansas over:

(1) BNSF’s Hutchinson Subdivision

rail line between milepost 218.3 and

milepost 213 + 4333 feet, at Hutchinson,

including BNSF’s Hutchinson ‘‘Way’’

Yard Track Nos. 144, 259, 304, 260, 261,

221, 174, 172, 171, 241, 220, 169, and

168;

(2) BNSF’s rail line between milepost

56.6 and milepost 60.2, at Abilene;

(3) BNSF’s rail line between milepost

184.3 and milepost 190.0, at Newton;

(4) UP’s rail line between milepost

487.1, at Newton, and milepost 518, at

McPherson, including the segment of

track extending about 116 feet in a

southerly direction from milepost 487.1,

and including UP’s Siding Track No. 6,

at Hesston, and Siding Track No. 1, at

Moundridge;

(5) UP’s rail line between milepost

164.05, at Abilene, and milepost 184.56,

at Salina;

(6) UP’s rail line between milepost

246.46 and milepost 243.56, at

Hutchinson; and

(7) UP’s rail line between milepost

182.0 and milepost 187.2, at Salina.

Because the projected revenues of the

rail lines to be operated will exceed $5

million, K&O certified to the Board, on

April 2, 2001, that the required notice

of its rail line acquisition was posted at

the workplace of the employees on the

affected lines on April 2, 2001.

According to K&O’s certification, it

served a copy of the notice on the

national office of the United

Transportation Union, the only labor

union with employees on the affected

lines. See 49 CFR 1150.32(e). The

transaction was scheduled to be

consummated on or shortly after June 1,

2001.

The transaction is related to two

concurrently filed verified notices on

exemption: STB Finance Docket No.

34042, Watco Companies, Inc.—

Continuance in Control Exemption—

Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad, Inc.,

wherein Watco Companies, Inc. seeks to

continue in control of K&O upon K&O’s

becoming a Class III rail carrier; and

STB Finance Docket No. 34047, Kansas

& Oklahoma Railroad, Inc.— Trackage

Rights Exemption—Central Kansas

Railway, L.L.C., wherein K&O seeks to

acquire temporary overhead trackage

rights over CKR’s 16-mile rail line in the

State of Kansas.

In the verified notice contains false or

misleading information, the exemption

is void ab initio. Petitions to reopen the

proceeding to revoke the exemption

under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d) may be filed

at any time. The filing of a petition to

revoke will not automatically stay the

transaction.

An original and 10 copies of all

pleadings, referring to STB Finance

Docket No. 34030 must be filed with the

Surface Transportation Board, Office of

the Secretary, Case Control Unit, 1925 K

Street, NW., Washington, DC 20423—

0001. In addition, a copy of each

pleading must be served on Karl Morell,

Esq., Ball Janik LLP, 1455 F Street, NW.,

Suite 225, Washington, DC 20005.

Board decisions and notices are

available on our website at

www.stb.dot.gov.

Decided: June 5, 2001.

By the Board, David M. Konschnik,

Director, Office of Proceedings.

Vernon A. Williams,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 01–14633 Filed 6–11–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4915–00–M

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board

[STB Finance Docket No. 34047]

Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad, Inc.—

Trackage Rights Exemption—Central

Kansas Railway, L.L.C.

Central Kansas Railway, L.L.C. (CKR),

has agreed to grant to Kansas &

Oklahoma Railroad, Inc. (K&O)

temporary overhead trackage rights over

the trackage of CKR located between

CKR milepost 19.5, near Garden Plain,

KS, and CKR milepost 3.5, at Wichita,

KS, a distance of 16 miles (trackage

rights line).1

The transaction was scheduled to be

consummated on or shortly after June 1,

2001.2

This transaction is related to two

concurrently filed verified notices of

exemption: STB Finance Docket No.

34030, Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad,

Inc.—Acquisition Exemption—Central

Kansas Railway, L.L.C., wherein K&O

seeks to acquire most of the rail lines

owned or leased and operated by CKR

in the States of Kansas and Colorado;3

and STB Finance Docket No. 34042,

Watco Companies, Inc.—Continuance in

Control Exemption—Kansas &

Oklahoma Railroad, Inc., wherein

Watco Companies, Inc. seeks to

continue in control of K&O upon K&O’s

becoming a Class III rail carrier.

The trackage rights will allow K&O to

move traffic to and from Wichita until

the relocation and rehabilitation

projects have been completed.

Under 49 U.S.C. 10502(g), the Board

may not use its exemption authority to

relieve a rail carrier of its statutory

obligation to protect the interests of its

employees. Section 11326(c), however,

does not provide for labor protection for

transactions under sections 11324 and

11325 that involve only Class III rail

carriers. Because this transaction

involves Class III rail carriers only, the

Board, under the statute, may not

impose labor protective conditions for

this transaction.

This notice is filed under 49 CFR

1180.2(d)(7). If it contains false or

misleading information, the exemption

is void ab initio. Petitions to revoke the

exemption under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d)

may be filed at any time. The filing of

a petition to revoke will not

automatically stay the transaction.

An original and 10 copies of all

pleadings, referring to STB Finance

Docket No. 34047, must be filed with

the Surface Transportation Board, Office

of the Secretary, Case Control Unit, 1925

K Street, NW., Washington, DC 20423–

0001. In addition, one copy of each

pleading must be served on Karl Morell,

Esq., Ball Janik LLP, 1455 F Street, NW.,

Suite 225, Washington, DC 20005.

Board decisions and notices are

available on our website at

www.stb.dot.gov.

Decided: June 5, 2001.

By the Board, David M. Konschnik,

Director, Office of Proceedings.

Vernon A. Williams,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 01–14635 Filed 6–11–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4915–00–P