Amtrak has filed a complaint against the Canadian National Railway over delays to its passenger trains caused by freight transportation.
The complaint was filed with the federal Surface Transportation Board. It asks the board to investigate and make recommendations for improving the on-time performance of Amtrak trains operating on CN's tracks. Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari says CN's performance in dispatching Amtrak trains has been dismal. There were nearly 4,100 instances where freight trains slowed two Amtrak routes last year — the Chicago-New Orleans route and the Chicago-Carbondale route. Freight train delays were imposed on 99 percent of the Chicago-New Orleans trains in 2011.
Canadian National Railway spokesman Patrick Waldron says the railroad is disappointed Amtrak filed the complaint instead of continuing negotiations.
