Comment EI-14202
Received or sent (printed as 9/30/2008)
Most federal law concerning railroads was passed in the 19th Century, a time when it was necessary to lay vast stretches of rail infrastructure to connect sparsely populated outposts. Today, the situation is vastly different – forced and taxpayer-subsidized railroad merger and acquisition activity in developed areas destroys communities. Highly profitable railroads can easily afford to make the investments necessary to safely integrate their operations into American communities. Much is being said about the devastating consequences the takeover of the EJ&E Railroad by the Canadian National will cause suburban Chicago-area communities. These communities will be fundamentally changed in character, and could be required to invest hundreds of millions of dollars to construct grade separations and other safety improvements – all without ever having had the STB weigh the environmental devastation equally against the benefits to a private railroad. We are fighting for our lives in urging that Canadian National Railroad be mandated to agree to putting in the infrastructures needed BEFORE being allowed to quadruple its trains and bring a 1200% increase in hazardous waste passing within 100 yards of our homes, with only their hope that there probably" won't be a devastating accident. Please consider the perils we face and our inability to protect ourselves, with utmost seriousness. James E. Griffin Physicist, retired Fermilab Accelerator Laboratory"
Submitted by: James E. Griffin
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-14202 · back to the docket sheet