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>From the Surface Transportation Board, Washington, D.C.
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The Surface Transportation Board today issued final rules that update the
agency's existing procedures on the interim use of railroad rights-of-way
for rail banking and recreational trail use under section 8(d) of the
National Trails System Act.
The new rules require a railroad
and trail sponsor to jointly notify
the Board when they reach a rail
banking/interim trail use
agreement. If an agreement covers
only part of the right-of-way at
issue, the parties are required to
ask the agency to conform the trail
condition covering the portion of
right-of-way subject to the
agreement. The new rules
additionally clarify that any party
assuming future responsibility for
a recreational trail must
acknowledge that the interim trail
use is subject to future
reactivation of the rail line.
In announcing the final rules,
Board Chairman Daniel R. Elliott
III said,
"The Rails-to-Trails program has
been successful in bringing the
nation so many recreational gems.
The new rules will help us keep
better track of these important
projects, which benefit so many
while also preserving the nation's
rail corridors for future use."
The Board issued the final rules in
today's decision in National Trails
System Act and Railroad
Rights-of-Way, EP 702
( http://www.stb.dot.gov/decisions/readingroom.nsf/WebDecisionID/41965?OpenDocument )
. That decision is available for
viewing and downloading at the
Board's website at www.stb.dot.gov.
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