Comment EI-6990
Received or sent (printed as 3/20/2008)
PARRY SOUND – Despite ongoing communications with Transport Canada and Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) and Canadian National Railway (CN), trains continue to block Parry Sound intersections. Late last year the town, along with the Parry Sound Fire Department, developed a resolution to increase rail and car maintenance, decrease train length and speed and limit idling on CN and CPR tracks through town. Additionally, fire chief Laurence Green has been in contact with Martin Lucian with Transport Canada, who in turn, has forwarded those concerns on to CN. “It’s an ongoing issue, up until Tuesday there were trains still blocking the intersections at all times of the day,” said Mr. Green Monday. “If it’s in the middle of the night we don’t usually hear about it. Sometimes CN will notify the town that they’re blocking an intersection. “This continuing procedure is dangerous to the public using the crossing. I have observed children walking to catch the school bus going around the guards, vehicles going around the crossing guards and blocked school buses. This continued blocking problem also impedes the response of emergency vehicles in our area.” Mr. Green noted one occasion where the automated crossing guards were down for approximately 20 hours because of a CPR train left without a crew. Although there are no regulations concerning train length, Mr. Green said the trains have been more than two miles long. “They’re too long and they don’t have enough power to pull the train up the grades through town, so they stall the engine,” Mr. Green said. “There are regulations out there that say they need so much power to pull the train according to its tonnage. But the people who are putting (the trains) together aren’t doing it properly. Basically what Transport Canada has told me is the rules are made by Transport Canada, but CN is not following them.” Mr. Green added that this has been an issue for not only Parry Sound, but also McDougall and Seguin Townships since there have been unidirectional trains going through the areas. “CN continues to operate longer trains than they are able to pull up the grades on the railroad, thus stalling the train, or breaking equipment,” said mayor Richard Adams. “This operational problem continues to block crossings in the Town of Parry Sound. It’s a new issue in the sense that the trains are now too long. The issue certainly has been exacerbated over the last few years.”
Submitted by: Concerned Citizen · Lake Zurich, 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-6990 · back to the docket sheet