While it would be nice and also in the public interest, not to mention the BNSF's interest, it ain't gunna happen in this universe.

Not with a dog-in-the-manger called UP (Utterly Pathetic), which wastes many many millions of stockholder dollars every year hanging on to the D&RG & WP trackage, even though they don't have much use for it themselves; just to keep someone else who could put it to good use, it from ever getting it.

Thus stifling any hope of real competition in much of the west. Note that trackage rights arrangements as long as this one, cannot possibly hope to provide anything other than sham competition. It ain't a level playing field. Either the STB was naive and stupid, or that is just the way they wanted it - No real competition. They did not do their duty. Nor were they fired - so apparently, the last few Presidents didn't give a damn either.


Also not with the overzealous deregulation that started with the Staggers act (Carter) and the subsequent creation of the Surface Transportation board; and continued thru the Bush and Clinton administrations. Also, considering that neither the current administration, nor the STB could care less about a level playing field for American businesses or their workers anyway (evidenced by very lopsided trade deals favoring a ruthless China, and of all places, our less than friendly southern neighbor).

Nor do they give a dam about the serious effects on the economy, caused by the extreme lack of real head to head, equal to equal, railroad competition in vast areas of the United States; nor do they care about the effect this has already had on millions of small businesses; who can't get rail services at all, forcing them to trucks and thus putting them at a serious competitive disadvantage with larger companies that still can get rail service.

In this universe, none of this public-be-dammed attitude is ever going to change, no matter who is elected -

So tain't happening!

Maybe some other universe - some other time continuum.