Comment EI-14152
Received or sent (printed as 9/30/2008)
Dear Ms. Johnson-Ball: I am a resident of the Village of Plainfield, Illinois. I am writing to comment on the proposed acquisition of the EJ&E Railroad in the Western Chicago suburbs by Canadian National Railway. As both a resident and a rail commuter, I am extremely concerned about the detrimental impact of the four to ten-fold increase in freight traffic that will come with CN's acquisition. This rail line is immediately adjacent to a number of residential housing developments. Homes and a number of schools, including Peterson Elementary school, are located within approximately 1000 feet or less of the tracks. Increased rail traffic due to the acquisition by CN will create more noise, more air pollution, and a substantially increased risk of catastrophic injury or death to children and residents in the event of a derailment or leaking tank car, particularly during the transport of hazardous materials. In addition, CN has proposed adding an additional track to the right of way. This construction will be extremely intrusive to residents and students located nearby. Both the construction and the increased traffic will likely have a significant impact on real estate values in the communities affected. Given the present state of the real estate market, I believe that the additional adverse burden placed on homeowners has not been adequately addressed by the STB in its analysis of community impact. The increased freight traffic will also have an adverse impact on vehicle traffic due to the substantial number of rail crossings. This will likely add substantially to traffic and commute times in the area, which are already significant. Also, it is not unreasonable to conclude that local air quality will be adversely impacted due to the increased idling of vehicles waiting at crossings. At present, there are virtually no below grade crossings in the Naperville-Plainfield area, and I am not aware of any meaningful proposal by CN to construct above or below grade crossings. Importantly, the increased rail traffic raises public safety concerns. In this community, ambulances are dispatched by 911 from two different hospitals. Rush-Copley Hospital is west of the EJ&E. If the CN acquisition goes forward, ambulances dispatched from Rush-Copley may be forced wait for substantial periods for the lengthy CN freight trains to pass. This may create dire circumstances for those individuals who are in urgent need to reach the hospital. As a rail commuter, I am very concerned that the CN acquisition will adversely impact on METRA rail service, Northwestern Indiana rail service, as well as the proposed STAR line. I do not believe that the Draft Environmental Impact Study adequately addresses these concerns. In short, I believe that the Draft Environmental Impact Study has not adequately addressed the risks and concerns noted herein, nor has there been adequate consideration and analysis given to the mitigation that will be required to address these concerns. I ask that the Surface Transportation Board more thoroughly consider the impact that a transaction such as the acquisition of the EJ&E by CN will have on the community, and that the STB require real, meaningful and concrete mitigation on the part of CN before this transaction may be considered. I strongly believe the adverse impacts on safety and the affected communities significantly outweigh the transportation benefits that would be obtained if this transaction is completed. After a more thorough review through a properly designed environmental impact study, I am sure that the Surface Transportation Board will agree with me and NOT approve CN's acquisition of the EJ&E. Thank you for your consideration. Very truly yours, Robert H. Sands
Submitted by: Robert H. Sands · Plainfield, 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-14152
File docketyard.org/document/a7af23d41b47f132f05779555242cd74f72bb715d9ecd0d3efb34207e8970933.docx · back to the docket sheet