By Justin Franz 

The U.S. Surface Transportation Board has given Rock Island Rail permission to operate the embattled Blackwell Northern Gateway Railroad in Oklahoma. 

Last week, the owners of the short line asked the STB for an emergency service order to allow Rock Island to replace the contract operator for at least 30 days. The shortline covers roughly 37 miles of mostly ex-Santa Fe track between Blackwell, Okla. and the BNSF mainline in Wellington, Kan., with a short stretch of Frisco trackage in Blackwell. Ownership of the line is split between the Oklahoma Department of Transportation and Blackwell Industrial Authority.

Last month, the Federal Railroad Administration issued a rare emergency order shutting down the Blackwell Northern after numerous safety violations were discovered. According to the FRA, the railroad was “operating with a complete disregard for the safety of the public.” Among the allegations was that the railroad was using unqualified engineers and at one point management even presented falsified engineer certification cards to inspectors. 

In last week’s request for an emergency service order, the owners of the line stated it was unlikely that the previous operator would be able to take the corrective actions needed to resume service.