Study to advise on EJ&E traffic increases A statewide freight study in Indiana will contain ideas on how communities can deal with Canadian National Railway's proposed purchase of the EJ&E Railway, which would increase train traffic threefold in some towns and cities. The study, started in June 2007, should be ready for delivery by this January, said Barbara Sloan, of Cambridge Systematics. CN proposed buying the EJ&E in September, when the freight study was already well along, but it is too big a deal to ignore, Sloan said.
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Illinois lawmaker asks for examination of CNs safety record in U.S.
(The following story by Richard Wronski appeared on the Chicago Tribune website on June 14.)
CHICAGO An Illinois congresswoman wants federal officials to take a closer look at the safety record of the Canadian National Railway Co. after a critical report by the Canadian government.
U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean said Friday that she and other critics of the CN's plan to buy the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway will ask the Federal Railroad Administration and the General Accounting Office to evaluate the CN's safety in the United States. The Canadian company wants to buy the local railroad for use as a freight bypass around Chicago.
Bean said Reps. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.) and Peter Visclosky (D- Ind.) back the request and that others are expected to do so.
Bean was responding to a May report to the Canadian House of Commons by a parliamentary committee on transportation.
The report gave the CN a low grade for implementing safety-management standards outlined in a 2001 rail safety act. It also cited a "culture of fear" among CN employees that makes it difficult to report safety violations.
Bean's comments came after taping WBBM Radio's "At Issue" program, scheduled for broadcast June 22; the show will feature her and CN Senior Vice President Gordon Trafton.
Trafton vigorously defended CN's safety record. "We believe we operate a safe railroad, one of the safest here in the U.S.," Trafton said. "When you compare us to the other carriers out there, we're significantly better."
The Federal Railroad Administration was already reviewing a safety plan the CN filed as part of its purchase of the EJ&E, a spokesman for the federal agency said. Those findings will be reported to the Surface Transportation Board, which must approve the deal.
PLAINFIELD, Ill. -- The village officially joined a growing coalition of suburbs that are opposed to a plan by Canadian National Railway to increase traffic on the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway tracks, the Herald News reports.
Plainfield village board members unanimously approved an intergovernmental agreement to join The Regional Answer to Canadian National (TRAC) and donate $10,000 to the cause.
The board also supported a statement of opposition to the possible Canadian National purchase of the EJ&E.
Last week, village officials took U.S. Rep. Judy Biggert, R-Hinsdale, on a tour of some local rail crossings that could be exponentially busier if the CN plan to buy the EJ&E tracks is approved by the Surface Transportation Board.
If the sale is approved, Canadian National plans to reroute freight train traffic around congested Chicago tracks on the EJ&E line, which could triple the number of trains at some crossings each day.
Officials would like the board to require CN to fund fixes that would route traffic over or under railways, alleviating concern about emergency vehicle access and potential traffic jams. The company is offering to pay 10 percent, or $40 million, of needed grade crossing work.
Canadian National officials have said instead of blaming their company for potential traffic gridlock, local officials should focus on solving their transportation problems.
(This item appeared in the Herald News June 27, 2008.)
(The following story by Lenore T. Adkins appeared on the Daily Herald website on June 30.)
CHICAGO Who will prevail in what's shaping up to be a battle between several local towns and an international railway company?
Only time well tell.
But for now, residents, elected officials and members of two groups in opposition against Canadian National Railway Co.'s, or CN's, $300 million pending purchase of the Elgin Joliet & Eastern railway, are celebrating an early victory.
CN has agreed to a study that will measure the environmental impact its purchase could have on surrounding communities, Barrington Mayor Karen Darch announced Sunday during the first of many local rallies against the acquisition.
Darch heads up Barrington Communities Against CN Rail Congestion, which includes North and South Barrington, Barrington Hills, Lake Barrington, Barrington Township, Cuba Township, Town Lakes and Deer Park.
She also is co-president of The Regional Answer to Canadian National, or TRAC, which represents dozens of communities, including Aurora, Naperville, Lake Zurich and Griffith, Ind.
A draft of the study, expected to be released at the end of the summer, would accompany hearings and at least 45 days of comments from the community, Darch said.
Afterward, the three-member U.S. Surface Transportation Board would either approve or reject the deal.
Darch thanked Congresswoman Melissa Bean and Congressman Dan Manzullo for their help with this endeavor while calling on them and their colleagues to update obsolete railway laws.
She also urged residents to storm the hearings and flood CN representatives with comments, just like they did earlier this year when 2,500 showed up for initial hearings and 3,000 mailed their comments in.
"I think we should try to overwhelm them again," she said.
More than 200 people attended Sunday's rally.
Right now, five trains measuring 6,000 feet cross through Barrington each day, Darch said. These trains cause about two minutes of down time when traveling at normal track speed, which is 40 mph, said CN spokesman Jim Kvedaras.
And within the next three years, CN proposes to add 15 more trains; Their length is expected to range between 5,500 to 7,000 feet, said Kvedaras.
The EJ&E runs in an arc around Chicago from Waukegan to Gary, Ind. CN plans to use those lines as a bypass for freight traffic around Chicago.
Railroad officials say their purchase will help relieve rail congestion. They also say it will bring economic and environmental benefits to the Chicago area, which will preserve it as one of the major transportation hubs in the country.
But residents are concerned increased freight train traffic would drive businesses out of town and prevent the sick from getting to the hospital in a timely fashion.
They also worry about increased fatalities involving children and a raised noise level.
"Even if it's not in your backyard, you hear it," said Barrington resident Julie Andrews.
Many locals say CN is moving full speed ahead with its plan to the detriment of the community.
But Kvedaras says the railway is in constant communication with all the parties involved.
"CN remains committed to working with communities along the EJ&E Railway to find reasonable solutions that balance everyone's needs," he said in a statement. "Initial meetings with every community willing to participate have been completed, and we are in second and third-round meetings with several communities."
(The following story by Robert Channick appeared on the Chicago Tribune website on June 29.)
CHICAGO Arguments against Canadian National Railway's proposed acquisition of a little-used freight line took a sharp turn Sunday at a Barrington rally from concerns over the quality of life to the grim economic realities in affected communities.
In Lake Zurich, a developer pulled the plug on a proposed $22 million, 120-unit senior living project because of its nearness to the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway Co. tracks. Pathway Senior Living, a Des Plaines company with 10 Chicago-area senior complexes, cited the increase in rail traffic as "incompatible with a residential use."
Village officials estimated a loss of $825,000 in annual revenue.
"We already found out, before a single train rolled down the track, how much economic harm this can cause," said Village President John Tolomei.
The rally in Barrington was held at Memorial Park, just blocks from a planned 29,000-square-foot retail redevelopment at Hough and Main Streets.
Village President Karen Darch acknowledged a growing anxiety over fallout from the freight line, which traverses five at-grade crossings in town.
"The business community is paying attention to this, obviously, and it's factoring into their decisions to do business in our communities," Darch said.
"If ever there were a case where the impact is great enough to have a turndown, this one is it," she said.
The proposed $300 million purchase of the EJ&E would allow Canadian National to use an outlying 198-mile loop to skirt rail congestion in Chicago.
Traffic on the route is expected to quadruple, running more than 20 freight trains per day through Barrington and other suburbs along the line.
The proposal is undergoing an impact review by the Federal Surface Transportation Board.
There are about 100 grade crossings from Joliet to Waukegan, giving rise to other concerns such as traffic, safety and convenience.
Jenny Brauch, 37, a Barrington resident who walked to the rally with her husband and their infant son, said the increased rail traffic would devastate the village's commercial district.
"People wouldn't come to Barrington to shop anymore," she said. "It's hard enough on a Saturday or Sunday to get into town with traffic the way it is now."
To mitigate the impact on the suburbs, Canadian National has set aside a pool of $40 million, from which it would contribute 5 percent to the construction of separated grade crossings, railroad spokesman Jim Kvedaras said Sunday. At the rally attended by several hundred people, officials said that money won't begin to make a dent.
Results from the impact study are expected by the end of the summer, with a final transportation board ruling as early as December, Darch said.
Officials vowed that Sunday's demonstration would not be the last.
"In the coming weeks, there will be rally after rally along this line," said Mayor Tom Weisner of Aurora. "All of us need to keep the pressure on" the transportation board.
(The following story by Lauren Traut appeared on the Frankfort Station website on July 1.)
FRANKFORT, Ill. Frankfort Village Administrator Jerry Ducay joined representatives from the Surface Transportation Board, Mayor Richard Daley and other area representatives Wednesday, June 25, for a meeting regarding the progression of the acquisition of EJ & E Railroad by Canadian National.
Staff members from STB were available to answer questions as part of the Metropolitan Mayors Congress, Ducay said. The brunt of the questions answered addressed the Environmental Impact Study surrounding the acquisition and the deadlines set.
After the Environmental Impact Study is completed, the STB issues a draft. After the draft is made public, the communities affected by the acquisition have 45 days to comment. Canadian National has asked that the publication date of the draft be moved up, as well as requested that specific deadlines be set for other steps in the process, Ducay said.
Residents who would be affected by the acquisition countered with a request for the deadlines to remain the same.
Ducay said he expects the draft could be issued within 30 days.
He added he asked that the draft not be issued sooner, to allow ample time to prepare engineers the village has hired to review the document.
"I wanted to make sure they're ready," Ducay said, on behalf of the village of Frankfort and the Will County Governmental League.
With as many as 30 communities possibly affected by the acquisition, Ducay hoped for more time allowed for comments.
"The hope is, the more time for review, the better," Ducay said.
At its June 16 board meeting, the Frankfort Village Board approved an intergovernmental agreement with The Regional Answer to Canadian National (TRAC), a coalition of west and southwest suburbs opposed to the possible deal.
Along with adopting the intergovernmental agreement, the village board also approved spending up to $10,000 for lobbying and legal fees to support its claim that should Canadian National (CN) acquire the EJ & E line the extra railway traffic will have an adverse effect on public health, safety, welfare and vehicular traffic.
CN hopes to acquire EJ & E's nearly 200 miles of track that encircle Chicago from Waukegan through Joliet and east to Gary, Ind. to reroute some of its freight traffic from congested Chicago. Acquiring the rail line would likely cost CN around $300 million.
The village's approval of TRAC is its latest try at stopping the sale.
"TRAC creates a single voice," Ducay said. "Regionally, we needed one voice to speak for us all. The idea is TRAC creates that single source of information."
(The following story by Dan Campana appeared on the Suburban Chicago News website on July 3.)
AURORA, Ill. They sat 20-deep heading east on Ogden Avenue Tuesday morning.
For two minutes and seven seconds, drivers waited patiently as a relatively short freight train motored south on the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway line on Aurora's far East Side. The proposed purchase of those tracks by Canadian National Railway -- which would lead to a greater number of freight trains, and longer ones at that -- brought Mayor Tom Weisner and U.S. Rep. Judy Biggert to the crossing that sees 47,000 daily vehicle trips across it.
Biggert met with Weisner, as well as other city officials, as part of a fact-gathering tour. As the federal Surface Transportation Board considers the environmental impact of CN's plan, Biggert wants more details about the public safety and traffic implications, as well as the quality of life and economic development concerns, of a CN deal on the communities the tracks cross.
"The impact this merger could have on everything from school buses to emergency responders is severe," said Biggert, of Hinsdale.
CN wants the EJ&E line to reroute freight traffic around the city of Chicago by using the 198 miles of track that extends from northwest Indiana to Chicago's northern suburbs. Suburban municipal and county leaders have formed The Regional Answer to Canadian National Coalition to act as a strong voice of opposition and concern.
Tuesday's group, which included East Side Aldermen Leroy Keith and Rick Mervine, toured the Ogden crossing where officials noted the track's proximity to a nearby subdivision, the amount of traffic seen on Ogden and other effects CN could have on the area.
Increased freight traffic through Aurora might derail plans to quiet trains on the EJ&E line, Keith said.
"We'll probably lose our ability to get the quiet zone if this sale goes through," he explained.
Officials also expressed concern with siting the proposed suburban commuter train service, called the STAR line, if CN added a second set of tracks next to the current EJ&E route. As drawn, the commuter line would connect 100 communities between Joliet and O'Hare airport.
"When you add in the second line, there not enough right-of-way for the STAR line," Keith added.
Weisner, a co-chairman of TRAC, vowed the fight will continue and that no one "is going to lay down and play dead" to Canadian National.
"The city of Aurora will continue to work with other towns along the EJ&E to ensure that our voices are heard and that proper steps are taken to mitigate the impact of any potential railway merger," the mayor said.
On Sunday, Weisner attended a community rally in Barrington and then attended a TRAC meeting on Monday.
"I've had a busy couple of days on this issue," Weisner said.
He announced a joint event July 23 by Aurora and Naperville on the railway plan.
"It will be both informational, as well as a rally," Weisner said.
CHICAGO U.S. regulators are not likely to make a decision on Canadian National Railway's purchase of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railroad until early next year, according to a ruling released on Friday.
But the U.S. Surface Transportation Board agreed to Canadian National's request to put limits on the length of an ongoing environmental review, which CN has warned would scuttle the $300 million deal for the Chicago-area rail carrier if it drags on past the end of the year.
The environmental review will be completed sometime between the beginning of December and the end of January, with the STB making a final decision "as soon as possible" after that, according to the ruling posted on the board's website.
CN struck a deal last year to buy the bulk of the 198-mile (315 km) EJ&E from United States Steel Corp. in an effort to speed up freight traffic through the congested Chicago rail hub where its trains now face lengthy delays.
But the purchase has run into vocal opposition in the city's western suburbs from residents worried that increased train traffic on the EJ&E's tracks will slow down cars at highway grade crossings and cause safety problems.
Canadian National, Canada's largest railway, which has extensive operations in the United States, had requested the environmental impact statement be finalized by Nov. 3, with the regulators issuing a decision on the deal by Dec. 1.
The regulators said that timetable would be too brief, but they also rejected a request by opponents for an extended 120-day comment period on the proposal.
CN had said when it announced the purchase last year that it expected to have it completed by mid-2008.
(The following story by Richard Wronski appeared on the Chicago Tribune website on July 26.)
CHICAGO A federal report on Friday raised the specter of frustrated motorists facing lengthy delays at 15 rail crossings in a dozen communities, but concluded that passenger service would not be impaired if a railroad that winds through Chicago's suburbs is sold.
The long-awaited report also identifies 10 communitiesamong them Barrington, Joliet, Mundelein and Chicago Heightswhere a tripling or quadrupling of freight traffic would severely hamper police, fire and emergency medical response.
The report prepared by Surface Transportation Board staff predicted train-versus-vehicle accidents would increase sharply along the century-old railroadfrom more than one a year to more than six annually.
The report was anxiously awaited by scores of communities, including Chicago, that stand to win or lose from the Canadian National Railway's controversial $300 million plan to buy the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway to divert freight traffic around the city's congested rail corridor.
The EJ&E railroad rings the suburbs in a 198-mile arc stretching from Mundelein to Joliet to northwest Indiana.
The purchase is touted by CN and some experts as a potential boon to the transportation industry and economy. Chicago officials strongly support the deal because of the economic impact and prospect of reduced freight traffic, which is expected to result in fewer accidents on rail lines in the city.
But fearing more freight trains in their backyards and outlying suburban downtowns, vocal opponents have rallied by the hundreds in recent months to fight the plan.
While viewed as an important step in the process, the 3,500-page document is subject to another round of public comments starting in August. The final version will be considered by the three-member board that will approve or deny the sale, a decision expected in early 2009.
The report encourages negotiations between CN and the affected communities, but indicated the final version would identify remedies if agreements aren't reached.
The report leaves a crucial question: Who will pay the hundreds of millions of dollars needed for building grade separationsoverpasses or underpassesat affected rail crossings?
Critics hoped the document would recommend that CN be required to pay the bulk of the costs, since the railroad stands to profit financially from the deal. But the report noted that, historically, railroads have not paid for more than 5 percent to 10 percent of grade separations because they "primarily benefit the community and not the railroad." Most of the cost is typically paid by the federal government with state and local funds.
One of the plan's staunchest opponents, U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean (D-Ill.), criticized the draft report as "highly disappointing." Bean said in a statement that it "seems to endorse allowing a private company to destroy local communities' quality of life, safety and economies, while expecting those communities to pick up the tab."
Another critic, Rep. Donald Manzullo (R-Ill.), blasted the review, saying it "washes its hands of any solutions. ... It's ridiculous."
The report supported the CN's view that the environmental issues were not that unusual and could be reasonably resolved, the railroad said in a statement. One of North America's largest railroads, CN pledged to work with "all communities along the EJ&E to come to agreement on appropriate mitigation measures."
In a statement separate from the report, STB Commissioner W. Douglas Buttrey made remarks that may indicate how the three-member board is leaning.
Buttrey, a Republican from Tennessee, said he was worried some communities would bear an unfair, "heavy burden" in efforts to ease congestion. He said he had visited many of the Chicago area communities that would be affected.
"It is hard for me to imagine how even the most far-reaching mitigation measures would be enough to offset or balance the environmental detriments that would flow from this proposal," he said.
Addressing another hot-button issue, the report said the EJ&E deal would not have an adverse effect on current and future Metra service, including the proposed suburb-to-suburb STAR line and SouthEast Service.
It also said commitments made by the CN would assure continued Amtrak service on CN tracks indefinitely. Concerns about Amtrak figured significantly in opposition to the deal from Sens. Dick Durbin and Barack Obama.
Durbin said Friday in a statement that the acquisition of the EJ&E will have a devastating impact on many of the communities, forcing up to a four-fold increase in freight traffic in some towns.
"I encourage everyone affected by this proposal to attend the Surface Transportation Board's public hearings, submit statements and let this agency know their concerns," the statement said.
Bean and other members of the Illinois delegation, including Reps. Peter Roskam, Judy Biggert, Bill Foster and Manzullo, will hold a Congressional hearing Aug. 5 to take testimony from experts and the communities.
Results from that hearing will be submitted to the STB for consideration in the final version of the environmental report, Bean said.
(The following story by Tom Musick appeared on the Northwest Herald website on July 27.)
CHICAGO Congressional leaders from both parties blasted a preliminary environmental impact statement Friday regarding Canadian Nationals proposed deal to buy the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway.
The Surface Transportation Board released a draft report about CNs $300 million proposal to buy a 200-mile railway through suburban Chicago to increase freight traffic.
The report cited potential safety and traffic problems and included measures that could ease the impact of the deal.
A 60-day public-comment period on the draft report will begin Aug. 1. A final environmental impact statement could be issued between Dec. 1 and Jan. 31, officials said.
The EJ&E does not cut through McHenry County, but it does affect northwest Cook County and popular regional routes such as Route 14 and Algonquin Road.
Canadian National has targeted the railway, which loops roughly from Waukegan to Gary, Ind., as a way to relieve congestion in and around Chicago.
U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean, D-Barrington, denounced the boards report Friday. She will join other suburban U.S. representatives at a field hearing Aug. 5 to collect testimony from experts that will be submitted to the STB.
Were extremely disappointed, Bean said. There are both local and federal concerns about the drastic, negative consequences for the communities that the STB essentially admits and acknowledges but provides no real solutions.
Canadian National representatives called the STBs draft report an important step in the regulatory process.
The facts set forth in the [report] conform to our view that the environmental issues raised in this proceeding are not unusual and can be reasonably mitigated, according to a CN statement. CN remains committed to continuing to work with all communities along the EJ&E to come to an agreement on appropriate mitigation measures.
The deal would add 15 to 20 freight trains a day through Barrington and other communities, causing traffic and safety problems for McHenry County drivers, said U.S. Rep. Don Manzullo, R-Egan. Yet regulators said CN should pay 5 percent to 10 percent of the mitigation costs for the project, he said.
As a result, taxpayers will be required to fund the hundreds of millions of dollars in improvements needed to mitigate the public problems caused by this private transaction, Manzullo said in a statement.
Barrington Hills Village President Robert Abboud, who is running for the 16th Congressional District as a Democrat, sharply has criticized the proposed deal. Steve Greenberg, a Republican who will challenge Bean for the 8th Congressional District seat, also has been a vocal opponent of CNs plan.
Bean said the proposal could threaten Metras proposed 55-mile STAR line, a suburban commuter-rail service that would connect 100 towns and four of its 12 existing routes from OHare Airport to Joliet.
