Comment EI-3510
Received or sent (printed as 1/14/2008)
With regards to Docket No. 35087, I would like to express my concerns over the environmetal and safety issues this proposal contains. As a homeowner living near the EJ&E tracks and Vice President of the local home owners association, I am extremely concerned with the effects of the increased rail traffic that this proposal will bring to our neighborhood. On the environmental side based on the reported increase in train traffic, there will be an approximately 500% increase in the air and noise pollution in our neighborhood. It is inconceivable to me that this proposal can be accepted without mitigation of these factors via sound barriers and other remedies so that the health of the local residents is not greatly impacted. There will be a significant safety issue for the children in the area with the chance of injury or death rising the same 500% as for the pollution issues raised above. What steps will be taken to prevent children and pets from entering the unguarded track areas? Also as a safety matter, what steps will be taken to insure that the track and rail bed is capable of handling this significant increase in traffic? A derailment could destroy a number of homes adjoining the tracks and injury or kill the residents of those homes. As evidenced by the collapse of the bridge last year in Minneapolis, the normal inspections conducted by government agencies is apparently inadequate to the task. Obviously the value of the nearby residential property will suffer greatly if these issues are not addressed. While I can not attend the remaining meetings on this subject because of business travel, I plan to enter a protest of this project to my local, state, and federal officials, and will encourage my neighbors to do likewise. As a former principal of the Citizens Action Committee of the Fox Valley Freeway IDOT study, I am well aware of what the concerted effort of local citizens can accomplish when these types of programs are proposed without consultation with and agreement of the citizens who are impacted.
Submitted by: David Swanson · SOAC · Elgin, 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-3510 · back to the docket sheet