Competing Railroads Fought Competition from DME

From the Argus Leader:

The BNSF, however, was another thing, Schieffer said. As he sought to shepherd the loan application through federal bureaucracy last year, "I certainly saw the BN coming in every office I was six times over with twice the people. They were all over the place."

While the Mayo Clinic and other entities in Rochester, Minn., and a confederation of West River and Wyoming landowners and environmental groups were the most vocal opponents, the BNSF did work hard quietly to kill the deal, Schieffer insists.

He said he knows this "from talking to people who were directly involved ... and actually from customers."

"They have been working long and hard on it both in Washington, D.C., and with customers," he said.

BNSF spokesman Patrick Hiatte declined to directly address Schieffer's claim.