Railroaders place to shoot the shit.

(The following report by Richard Wronski appeared on the Chicago Tribune website on April 28, 2010.)

WASHINGTON, D.C. Federal regulators on Wednesday scoffed at Canadian National Railway's assertion that its locomotive-size undercount of delays at suburban railroad crossings was the result of a mere misunderstanding.

Surface Transportation Board members said at a hearing that they were deeply disappointed in CN for reporting that in November and December, there were only 14 occasions where trains blocked crossings for at least 10 minutes between Mundelein and Matteson. An independent audit showed that occurred 1,457 times in the same period.

"I found some of the testimony disingenuous," board member Francis Mulvey said after hearing CN officials try to explain their miscount.

The board also began considering punitive action against the railroad company. Charles Nottingham urged fellow board members to extend oversight of the railroad by a year. The board could also impose a fine or further conditions on CN.

Regulators set forth a five-year monitoring period after they approved CN's purchase of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern line in December 2008 for $300 million.

Suburbs along the EJ&E tried to stop the deal, complaining that it would triple or quadruple the freight train traffic on the line, blocking crossings for long periods, tying up traffic and slowing emergency responders trying to cross the tracks.

CN expressed "regret" at the undercount, essentially blaming it on a miscommunication with federal regulators. The rail company had reported only crossings blocked by stopped trains, but the board had mandated that delays caused by slow-moving trains also had to be included.

CN special adviser Gordon Trafton said the railroad was "not looking to hide information" and had "diligently worked" to meet what it thought were the board's expectations.

But that answer didn't satisfy board members, who pointed to a directive that ordered the railroad to provide data on the cause and frequency of blockages.

Board Chairman Daniel Elliott III opened the hearing by expressing condolences over the death of Katie Lunn, a 26-year-old dance instructor from Chicago who was killed at a CN crossing in University Park on April 16.

Lunn's car was struck by an Amtrak train shortly after a maintenance crew inadvertently turned off the crossing warning system, a probe of the crash found.

U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean, D-Ill., a critic of the CN acquisition of the EJ&E, urged the board at Wednesday's hearing to "use its full authority to levy fines and reassess the terms of its approval decision. So far, CN's promises to work with communities and keep their commitments have proven false."

Thursday, April 29, 2010