Houston, TX — Federal officials and regulators should continue the balanced policies that have made freight railroads such reliable partners for the Texas economy, writes Tiffany Melvin, president of North American Strategy for Competitiveness Inc., in a recent op-ed for the Houston Business Journal. She writes:
“In Texas, our 52 freight railroads operate over 10,506 miles of track and employ 17,453 people. The extensive rail presence at the Port of Houston originates and terminates shipments from each of the lower 48 states as well as Canada and Mexico. Rail connections have helped to make Houston the number one region in the country for exports and foreign waterborne tonnage.”
Melvin also emphasizes her signature on a group letter to policymakers commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Staggers Rail Act, concluding, “Texas and trade rely on freight railroads. And freight railroads rely on smart regulation. It is all connected.”