Comment EI-13131
Received or sent (printed as 9/24/2008)
Please deny the CN purchase of the EJ&E rail line. The Surface Transportation Board will be ruling on Docket No. FD-35087 regarding Canadian National's purchase of the EJ&E railroad tracks. This purchase will move significant rail traffic into areas where significant railroad crossing upgrades will be needed to mitigate the rail traffic increase. The proper mitigation must be ensured at 100% of CN's expense for safe and efficient student, emergency, and commuter traffic. For example, as the third largest school district in the state of Illinois, Indian Prairie transports 17,500 students each day. The EJ&E rail line in question stretches more than 11 miles through the district with seven schools located within a half mile of the tracks. There are two grade-level crossings of particular concern. School buses cross the Ogden Avenue tracks a total of 164 times each day and the Montgomery Avenue tracks 139 times each day. If the proposed sale goes through, there is an expected increase not only in the number of trains traveling though the community, but also in train length. Gate closures are anticipated to increase up to 10 minutes per train. Delays created by rail traffic will impact students arrival to school as well as their timely return home. Alternative bus routes are grade crossings as well. Travel impacts would also be experienced by emergency vehicles and the increasing commuter traffic as the counties west of the line continue to grow and require access to the established resources east of the rail line. Thank you for your service!
Submitted by: Peter Kohl · Naperville, IL
The Board publishes this comment in its environmental-comment table for this proceeding. It is quoted here as printed; nothing is inferred from it, and it states the commenter's own position in their own words, not this record's.
Permanent address docketyard.org/d/FD-35087/comment/EI-13131 · back to the docket sheet