Shippers would face fewer barriers to shifting cargo between railroads under a regulation the Surface Transportation Board said it would propose on Wednesday, as the body considers what could be the biggest merger in industry history.
If approved, the rule would allow the independent federal agency to consider on a case-by-case basis whether to approve requests from rail customers seeking lower prices and faster delivery times by shifting cargo from one railroad to another at a shipments’ starting or ending point, according to the STB. A 1985 rule requires all shippers meet standards such as showing a railroad is inhibiting ...