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[quote user="A.K. Cummings"]Bucyrus — Rochester certainly has amassed political power in its fight against DM&E. That power fought to persuade the STB not to approve the project. It lost. Then, it fought to force DM&E to bypass the city. It lost. Then, it fought to deny DM&E the FRA loan. It won. But now there's no need for the FRA loan. Enough political influence can win any political match. But the matches have all been fought, the winners all decided. How, exactly, are they supposed to stop the project now that it's been approved? They already tried the courts and lost. I just don't see any leverage on the part of Rochester in this whole deal, regardless of the political muscle they've enlisted. And interstate commerce laws pretty well protect them from any law or ordinance to try and route coal trains elsewhere. Andy Cummings Associate Editor Trains Magazine Waukesha, Wis.[/quote]Andy,I don't know how they could stop the project, but while that appears to be their ultimate goal, it seems quite improbable.  I think the best they can hope for is the forcing of concessions in the line structure through Rochester.  But if they now have no leverage at all, as you say, I don't see how they can force any concessions.  There seems to be a perception that RC won the second to the last battle, but lost the last one, so the war is over.  I guess it would be over if the fight to prevent FRA funding was the last weapon in their arsenal.  They seemed to have been quiet since that chapter, so it will be interesting to see if they resume the fight now that CP has replaced their original adversary.  I'm curious.  When you say that RC won their fight to deny DM&E the FRA loan, do you mean they won by actually causing the denial, or that they won just because the decision matched their preference?  I had the impression that it was the latter, and that RC had no effect on the FRA decision.
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