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April 6, 2011

State picks operator for northern rail lines

By The Mainebiz News Staff

Eastern Maine Railroad has been chosen as the new operator of 233 miles of state-owned rail lines in northern Maine.

The Maine Department of Transportation yesterday announced the selection of EMR to operate the Aroostook Lines, track previously owned by Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway and purchased by the state in January for $20 million, according to a press release from the DOT. EMR, a subsidiary of J.D. Irving Ltd. and the U.S. affiliate of New Brunswick Southern Railway, operates rail line between Vanceboro and Brownville Junction. The company, one of five that issued proposals to operate the lines, will be responsible for maintenance and operation costs of the Aroostook Lines, which run from Millinocket to Madawaska with branches to Caribou, Presque Isle, Easton, Houlton and Limestone. A lease agreement between the state and EMR has not been finalized.

EMR's lease of the rail lines does not extend to a 24-mile spur at the center of a dispute between MM&A and Canadian National Railway and Twin Rivers Paper Co. MM&A and CN sued each other last year over access to the spur that leads to the paper mill in Madawaska, and a federal judge recently upheld MM&A's exclusive access to the line through a property easement. However, Twin Rivers has stopped using MM&A's service and is instead trucking its cargo to Canada to be handled by CN, citing dissatisfaction with MM&A. The DOT has directed EMR to work with MM&A and Twin Rivers to settle the dispute, according to the Bangor Daily News.

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