Significant portions of the Southwest Light Rail Transit Project (SWLRT) will be co-located with freight rail in the Kenilworth Corridor and the Bass Lake Spur. Twin Cities & Western Railroad Company (TCW) filed suit in federal district court, and opposed necessary federal regulatory approvals at the Surface Transportation Board (STB), arguing that the construction and operation of SWLRT would harm TCW’s freight service in those corridors.

Following mediation sponsored by the STB, the parties have resolved all of TCW’s concerns.  As part of the settlement agreement, the Metropolitan Council and TCW agreed to a Construction Agreement and a Co-Location Agreement resolving various questions relating to operations, maintenance, capital repair, and liability arising out of the co-location of freight rail and SWLRT during and after construction. Because the Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority (HCRRA) will hold trackage rights agreements with TCW in the Kenilworth Corridor and the Bass Lake Spur, HCRRA needs to consent to those provisions of the Construction Agreement and the Colocation Agreement that are relevant to the trackage rights agreements. This resolution authorizes the HCRRA Chair to execute such consent.