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Van Pool Transportation LLC--Acquisition of Control--F. M. Kuzmeskus, Inc. Publication: Federal Register Signing Official: Kenyatta Clay Agency: Surface Transportation Board Date: 14 July 2022 Topic: Van Pool Transportation, Travel Kuz  
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 134 (Thursday, July 14, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42258-42260]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-15046]
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SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD
[Docket No. MCF 21099]
Van Pool Transportation LLC--Acquisition of Control--F. M.
Kuzmeskus, Inc.
AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board.
ACTION: Notice tentatively approving and authorizing finance
transaction.
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SUMMARY: On June 14, 2022, Van Pool Transportation LLC (Van Pool or
Applicant), a noncarrier, filed an application for Van Pool to acquire
control of an interstate passenger motor carrier, F. M. Kuzmeskus,
Inc., doing business as Travel Kuz (Travel Kuz), from its shareholders,
Darlene Kuzmeskus, Michael Doyle, and Pamala Reipold (collectively,
Sellers). The Board is tentatively approving and authorizing the
transaction, and, if no opposing comments are timely filed, this notice
will be the final Board action.
[[Page 42259]]
DATES: Comments must be filed by August 28, 2022. If any comments are
filed, Van Pool may file a reply by September 12, 2022. If no opposing
comments are filed by August 28, 2022, this notice shall be effective
on August 29, 2022.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be filed with the Board either via e-filing or
in writing addressed to: Surface Transportation Board, 395 E Street SW,
Washington, DC 20423-0001. In addition, send one copy of comments to
Van Pool's representative: Andrew K. Light, Scopelitis, Garvin, Light,
Hanson & Feary, P.C., 10 W Market Street, Suite 1400, Indianapolis, IN
46204.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Valerie Quinn at (202) 245-0283.
Assistance for the hearing impaired is available through the Federal
Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: According to the application, Van Pool is a
limited liability company organized under Delaware law and
headquartered in Wilbraham, Mass. (Appl. 2.) Van Pool states that it
owns and controls all of the equity and voting interest in the
following interstate passenger motor carriers (collectively, the
Affiliate Regulated Carriers) that hold interstate passenger motor
carrier authority, (id. at 2-4): \1\
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\1\ Additional information about these motor carriers, including
U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) numbers, motor carrier
numbers, and USDOT safety fitness ratings, can be found in the
application. (See id. at 2-4; id. at Ex. A.)
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NRT Bus, Inc. (NRT), which primarily provides non-
regulated student school bus transportation services in Massachusetts
(Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Suffolk and Worcester counties), and
occasional charter services;
Trombly Motor Coach Service, Inc. (Trombly), which
primarily provides non-regulated school bus transportation services in
Massachusetts (Essex and Middlesex counties) and occasional charter
services;
Salter Transportation, Inc. (Salter), which primarily
provides non-regulated school bus transportation services in
Massachusetts (Essex County) and southern New Hampshire, and occasional
charter services; and
Easton Coach Company, LLC (Easton), which provides (i)
intrastate paratransit, shuttle, and line-run services under contracts
with regional transportation authorities and other organizations,
primarily in New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania, and (ii) private
charter motor coach and shuttle services (interstate and intrastate),
primarily in eastern Pennsylvania.\2\
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\2\ In Van Pool Transportation LLC--Acquisition of Control--
Alltown Bus Service, Inc., Docket No. MCF 21100, Van Pool has filed
an application to acquire Alltown Bus Service, Inc. Today, the Board
is tentatively approving that application.
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According to the application, Van Pool also has operating
subsidiaries that provide transportation services that do not involve
regulated interstate transportation or require interstate passenger
authority (together with the Affiliate Regulated Carriers, the
Applicant Subsidiaries), primarily in the northeastern portion of the
United States. (Appl. 2-3; id. at Ex. B.) Van Pool states that it is
indirectly owned and controlled by investment funds affiliated with
Audax Management Company, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company.
(Id. at 6.) \3\
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\3\ Further information about the Applicant's corporate
structure and ownership can be found in the application. (See Appl.
6; id. at Ex. B.)
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The application explains that Travel Kuz, the carrier being
acquired, is a Massachusetts corporation that provides (i) non-
regulated school bus transportation services in western Massachusetts
and southern Vermont (the Service Areas), (ii) intrastate and
interstate motor coach and limousine charter services for group
activities in the Service Areas, and (iii) limited intrastate and
interstate charter services utilizing school buses. (Id. at 5.) The
application states that Travel Kuz: uses approximately 158 vehicles and
employs approximately 150 drivers in providing its services; holds
interstate operating authority under FMCSA Docket No. MC-205423; and
has a ``Satisfactory'' USDOT Safety Rating. (Id.) \4\ According to the
application, all of the issued and outstanding shares of Travel Kuz are
held by the Sellers, who do not own or control any interstate passenger
motor carrier other than Travel Kuz. (Id. at 4-5.) Van Pool represents
that, through this transaction, it will acquire the issued and
outstanding shares of Travel Kuz, the effect of which will be to place
Travel Kuz under the control of Van Pool. (Id. at 5.)
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\4\ Additional information about Travel Kuz, including
information about operations pursuant to state authority, can be
found in the application. (See id. at 5.)
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Under 49 U.S.C. 14303(b), the Board must approve and authorize a
transaction that it finds consistent with the public interest, taking
into consideration at least: (1) the effect of the proposed transaction
on the adequacy of transportation to the public, (2) the total fixed
charges that result from the proposed transaction, and (3) the interest
of affected carrier employees. Van Pool has submitted the information
required by 49 CFR 1182.2, including information to demonstrate that
the proposed transaction is consistent with the public interest under
49 U.S.C. 14303(b), see 49 CFR 1182.2(a)(7), and a jurisdictional
statement under 49 U.S.C. 14303(g) that the aggregate gross operating
revenues of the involved carriers exceeded $2 million during the 12-
month period immediately preceding the filing of the application, see
49 CFR 1182.2(a)(5). (See Appl. 7-11.)
Van Pool asserts that the proposed transaction will not have a
material, detrimental impact on the adequacy of transportation services
available to the public. (Id. at 7-8.) Van Pool states that Travel Kuz
will continue to provide the same services it currently provides under
the same name, but will operate as a subsidiary of Van Pool, which is
experienced in passenger transportation operations. (Id.) Van Pool
explains that it is experienced in the same market segments served by
Travel Kuz and that the transaction is expected to result in improved
operating efficiencies, increased equipment utilization rates, and cost
savings derived from economies of scale, all of which will help ensure
the provision of adequate service to the public. (Id. at 8.) Van Pool
also asserts that adding Travel Kuz to its corporate family will
enhance the viability of Van Pool's organization and the Applicant
Subsidiaries. (Id.)
Van Pool claims that neither competition nor the public interest
will be adversely affected by the proposed transaction. (Id. at 9-11.)
Van Pool explains that the market for the transportation services
provided by Travel Kuz is competitive in its Service Areas. (Id. at
10.) Specifically, Applicant states that school bus services are often
outsourced under contracts using competitive bidding processes, and
that competitors of Travel Kuz include First Student, Durham School
Services, and Student Transportation of America. (Id.) As to motor
coach and limousine charter services (intrastate and interstate), Van
Pool states that competitors include King Gray, Premier Coach, Peter
Pan, and Wilson Bus, as well as brokers for charter services that
operate within the Service Areas. (Id. at 10-11.) Applicant further
notes that all charter service providers, including Travel Kuz, compete
with other modes of passenger transportation, including rail, low-cost
airlines, and passenger transportation network companies. (Id. at 11.)
Van Pool also notes that the Service Areas of Travel Kuz are
geographically ``dispersed'' from the service areas of the Affiliate
Regulated
[[Page 42260]]
Carriers \5\ and states that there is virtually no overlap in the
service areas and customer bases among the Affiliate Regulated Carriers
and Travel Kuz. (Id.)
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\5\ The service areas of NRT, Trombly, and Salter are in eastern
Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire, and the service areas of
Easton are in eastern Pennsylvania and the state of New Jersey.
(Id.)
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Van Pool states that the proposed transaction will increase fixed
charges in the form of interest expenses because funds will be borrowed
to assist in financing the transaction; however, Van Pool maintains
that the increase will not impact the provision of transportation
services to the public. (Id. at 8.) Van Pool also asserts that it does
not expect the transaction to have substantial impacts on employees or
labor conditions, and it does not anticipate a measurable reduction in
force or changes in compensation levels or benefits at Travel Kuz. (Id.
at 9.) Van Pool submits, however, that staffing redundancies could
result in limited downsizing of back-office or managerial-level
personnel. (Id.)
The Board finds that the acquisition as proposed in the application
is consistent with the public interest and should be tentatively
approved and authorized. If any opposing comments are timely filed,
these findings will be deemed vacated, and, unless a final decision can
be made on the record as developed, a procedural schedule will be
adopted to reconsider the application. See 49 CFR 1182.6. If no
opposing comments are filed by expiration of the comment period, this
notice will take effect automatically and will be the final Board
action.
This action is categorically excluded from environmental review
under 49 CFR 1105.6(c).
Board decisions and notices are available at www.stb.gov.
It is ordered:
1. The proposed transaction is approved and authorized, subject to
the filing of opposing comments.
2. If opposing comments are timely filed, the findings made in this
notice will be deemed vacated.
3. This notice will be effective August 29, 2022, unless opposing
comments are filed by August 28, 2022. If any comments are filed,
Applicant may file a reply by September 12, 2022.
4. A copy of this notice will be served on: (1) the U.S. Department
of Transportation, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 1200
New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590; (2) the U.S. Department of
Justice, Antitrust Division, 10th Street & Pennsylvania Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20530; and (3) the U.S. Department of Transportation,
Office of the General Counsel, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington,
DC 20590.
Decided: July 8, 2022.
By the Board, Board Members Fuchs, Hedlund, Oberman, Primus, and
Schultz.
Kenyatta Clay,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2022-15046 Filed 7-13-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P