Arrangements between railroads

Track utilization rights shall be granted to allow railway undertakings (RU ) access to railway infrastructure and services.

History

Especially in the early days of railway development in the 19th century made ​​the still incomplete route network and many private railway companies the conclusion of license agreements required. Only in this way it was possible to the companies to make economic offers to shippers and travelers. These agreements were as Peage Treaty ( from the French péage - Toll ) refers.

Situation in individual countries

Germany

Until entry into force of the General Railway Act ( AEG) on 1 January 1994, the private railways had the opportunity to railway infrastructure of the German Federal Railways and Deutsche Reichsbahn to use only in exceptional cases. If a railway company has the necessary license from the Federal Railway Authority (EBA ), it may order routes for trains at DB Netz AG. According to the routes then a train path charge is payable. The amount is dependent on utilization of routes, from the expansion of state and of the types of trains. According to the frequency of use between control lines (regular use), optional paths ( Sporadic use) and special paths is (one time use) differed. For the monitoring of non-discriminatory access to rail infrastructure, the Federal Network Agency for Electricity, Gas, Telecommunications, Post and Railways is responsible since 1 January 2006 in Germany.

Austria

The first Peage contract in Austria today closed the railway Vienna Aspangbahn on December 3, 1880 from the Southern Railway Company. So it was the Aspangbahn permitted to use the tracks of the Southern Railway Company, between the stations Felix village and Wiener Neustadt South Station. The Aspangbahn company had to pay for the Southern Railway Company a fixed amount in order to increase the station Wiener Neustadt and a usage fee on the number of through- axles and car. The Aspangbahn had originally intended to build its own line from Sollenau to Wiener Neustadt, these plans were even persecuted until around 1900. From the Imperial Parliament after interventions of the city senate and the kk priv Southern Railway Company, however, was her from doing so.

Further Peage contracts between railway companies were Following this example, completed in sequence. So agreed, for example, the Crown Prince Rudolf train the shared use of the 18.4 km long section between Selzthal and Stainach - Irdning with the Empress Elisabeth train.

Switzerland

In Switzerland, since the beginning of 1999 applies to freight free network access, referred to there as "open access".

United States

Because the networks of railway companies seldom meet the requirements of railroad passengers, the railways have developed in the U.S. methods to adapt their range customized.

"Joint rate and route "

A method is "joint rate and route " called ( joint pricing and route). This arrange two railway companies a common price from Origin on the first to a destination on the second society. One of the railroads created the invoice to the customer and then issues an appropriate amount to the other part of society on. Each railroad uses its own locomotives and their own staff and also bears the risks associated transport on the railway network their own.

Trackage Rights ( route rights )

Another method is the granting of " Trackage Rights " or route rights. Here is a railway company ( " rental " companies ) obtained by the agreement, the right to operate its own trains with its own staff and normally customers across the tracks of a second railway company (owner). The tracks used by both railways are called "joint facility" ( community facility ). In contrast to the first variant, the rental company the exclusive contractor of the customer in such an agreement. It is responsible for transporting and for loss of or damage to cargo alone. The owner company receives a fixed annual sum for track maintenance, dispatchers and other costs. There are also a variable fee and the total traffic is measured by the amount of traffic the Mietunternehmens on the joint facility. For simplicity, in most of the agreements by the rental companies charge payable is reported in cents per car- mile or ton -mile.

Route rights may "full service " ( full service ) mean, that is, the rental company has the right to serve customers directly on the shared line, or "overhead - service" or " bridge service" his ( the terms are synonymous ). This means that the rental company may not serve customers on the common path.

For example, Union Pacific's rights over BNSF Cajon Pass route "full service " route use rights. However, most current track usage rights are " bridge service " rights, such as at the Metro-North, which runs from Penn Station in New York on the way to Upstate New York through New Jersey on the New Jersey Transit routes ( may or hold ), there holds but not at stations, but without stopping passes through until it again reaches the territory of New York and therefore its route.

" Trackage Rights " agreements are regulated by the Surface Transportation Board ( STB) and are also open to the public. Even traditional safeguards for railway employees are associated with the route use rights. If the employees of a company owners work or lose their jobs because a new rental company transport volume over such a distance is reduced, they must according to a federal law still up to six years to receive a payment. In the context of mergers in the 1980s and 1990s " Trackage Rights " were by the STB to ensure competition often revised.

Haulage Rights (promotion rights )

In the current deregulated environment both methods above have their drawbacks. The " Staggers Act" of 1980 reduced the antitrust protection enjoyed the competing railroads, when they offered uniform prices. The rail customers have an aversion to have to negotiate with more than one company's new transportation contracts. To prevent this, the railways have turned increasingly so-called " haulage rights" or transport arrangements. Here, marketing is separated from the operational business.

The railway undertaking is with the customer from the price over the entire distance. It represents the freight cars and is responsible for loss and damage of the cargo. The railway undertaking, which shall authorize the transportation rights, meanwhile, retains direct control over the operation. It provides the tracks, the train crew, dispatchers and sometimes the locomotives available. The company receives a measured to the car movements fee. However, it does not get any insight into the agreements with the customer.

Due to the concentration of transportation from origin to destination on a company such agreements in the rail customers are very popular. There is no difficult negotiations with a number of companies, if the customer wants to change once the price or performance. The railways like this concept because are considered trade agreement due to a number of federal and court decisions, transportation rights and thus are outside the jurisdiction of the Surface Transportation Board.

This also means that employees do not have appropriate protection against dismissal. In general, they benefit from additional traffic created by the agreements. The railway undertaking must also not publish the contracts of carriage.

However, this secrecy also leads to confusion, eg on the transfer points from one society to another, or responsibility for the leased wagons. These data are rarely published by the company to give the competitors an advantage. In recent years, the number and complexity of such agreements has greatly increased.

Using the example of Santa Fe This will be illustrated. The route network from 1994 showed not only the 12.2 thousand kilometers own route, but also accessible by carriage rights areas. For example, the Santa Fe container trains to Boston, New York and Philadelphia could offer pursuant to an agreement with Conrail in 1988. A promotion agreement with the Grand Trunk Western enables the Santa Fe to transport auto parts from Mexico to the Ford plants in Ontario. Another agreement with the Gateway Western Railroad provides access to and from St. Louis.

The Santa Fe operated since 1993, Memphis and Birmingham (Alabama ) by means of an agreement with the Burlington Northern Railroad. Furthermore, the company also offered by truck. Thus, it was possible that under the sign of the Santa Fe freight between Winston -Salem and Sacramento could be transported.

Union Station

" Union Station " means a railway station where the rail tracks, and services provided by two or more railway companies will be shared. Thus, the passengers have the ability to switch easily between the trains. Often, the station is used by all passenger trains, which serve the city.

In practice, a " Union Station " is normally operated by an independent company whose owners are the railway companies who use the station. Here, according to the shares of the company's best interests in the use of the station.

Due to the transition of passenger service on the Amtrak these regulations are obsolete, today most of the former " Union Station " owned by Amtrak. Important Union Stations were located in Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, St. Louis and Washington, DC

Operation, leasing, majority-owned

In the early days of the railway intercourse often only the tracks were built by a railroad company. Then usually no more capital was available for the acquisition of rolling stock. The operation of these routes, the railway company was then often left for a fee, which sailed the subsequent main line. These agreements were usually terminated when the track was built was long enough to be operated independently or changes in the societies were ( acquisition, bankruptcy ).

Another form is and was the leasing of a track. In general, links have been leased, which offered access to major markets or power combined sense. The contracts were usually closed for an extended period of time. So it contracts with maturities to 99 years in a few cases even longer. For this lease charges shall be paid to the lessor. Since many secondary roads with federal and state funds were renewed in the 1980s and 1990s and then passed into the public domain, are today in the U.S. and many public bodies (municipalities, counties ) lessors of routes.

Since many railway companies were joint-stock companies, the catchment area of their own company was expanded through the acquisition of equity interests in other entities.

• Rail freight
• Transport Law
• Railway operation
• Property law
• Railway Law