Post by title1parent on May 17, 2008 6:10:19 GMT -5
Railway company: Grade separation not needed
May 16, 2008
LISLE -- Based on a preliminary independant analysis of the data, officials with Canadian National Railway said it does not see a need for under/overpasses at any of the crossings along the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway.
“We have looked at the route, have looked at each and every crossing, and we don’t see any crossing that would require any grade separation,” said Jim Foote, excutive vice president of sales and marketing for CN.
The analysis was done using criteria from the Illinois Department of Transporation. After the purchase is completed, none of the crossings would fall within the top 50 in need of separation.
But that doesn’t mean the railway won’t sit down and talk with local communities about the possibilty of working together with other funding partners, the company clarified after Foote’s briefing before the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce Friday morning.
“There is no ultimatum, there is nothing drawn in the sand that says we’re not going to build grade separations,” said Jim Kvedaras, senior manager of U.S. government and public affairs for CN.
In September, CN announced plans to buy EJ&E, pending approval from the U.S. Surface Transportation Board. The Montreal-based company wants to buy the line so it can re-route traffic around congested tracks in Chicago. The line passes through Naperville and several neighboring communities. Should the sale go through, train traffic in the Naperville area is expected to increase from 15.7 trains per day to 42.3 trains.
While CN says the plan has several regional benefits, the proposal has drawn the ire of area residents and leaders who question the impact on traffic, safety and quality of life. At Friday’s briefing, U.S. Rep. Judy Biggert, R-Hinsdale, voiced her concens about the effects of the sale.
“Communities along the EJ&E line, including Naperville, are still trying to determine the total cost of mitigating the impact of the additional trains. And while we don’t know the exact cost yet, you can be sure that it’s going to be much more than the total $40 million that CN is currently offering,” Biggert said. “In fact, $40 million is the amount that the city of Naperville estimates it will cost to construct one – just one – grade separation. And that’s just one in more than 40 towns traversed by the EJ&E.”
On Tuesday CN filed a request with the STB seeking a timeline for completion of the required Environmental Impact Statement, along with a final decision by Dec. 1. Friday U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois and U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean, D-Barrington, sent a letter to the STB urging the Board to reject CN’s request.
“For a case and level of involvement that has been recognized by all participants and the STB to be unprecendented, an EIS process that is completed in less than the typical time from of 18 months to several years, as cited by the Board as an average, would jeopardize the ability of the STB to do the comprehensive investigation warranted and undermine the credibility and authority of hte EIS rcommendations,” said the Durbin/Bean press release.
May 16, 2008
LISLE -- Based on a preliminary independant analysis of the data, officials with Canadian National Railway said it does not see a need for under/overpasses at any of the crossings along the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway.
“We have looked at the route, have looked at each and every crossing, and we don’t see any crossing that would require any grade separation,” said Jim Foote, excutive vice president of sales and marketing for CN.
The analysis was done using criteria from the Illinois Department of Transporation. After the purchase is completed, none of the crossings would fall within the top 50 in need of separation.
But that doesn’t mean the railway won’t sit down and talk with local communities about the possibilty of working together with other funding partners, the company clarified after Foote’s briefing before the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce Friday morning.
“There is no ultimatum, there is nothing drawn in the sand that says we’re not going to build grade separations,” said Jim Kvedaras, senior manager of U.S. government and public affairs for CN.
In September, CN announced plans to buy EJ&E, pending approval from the U.S. Surface Transportation Board. The Montreal-based company wants to buy the line so it can re-route traffic around congested tracks in Chicago. The line passes through Naperville and several neighboring communities. Should the sale go through, train traffic in the Naperville area is expected to increase from 15.7 trains per day to 42.3 trains.
While CN says the plan has several regional benefits, the proposal has drawn the ire of area residents and leaders who question the impact on traffic, safety and quality of life. At Friday’s briefing, U.S. Rep. Judy Biggert, R-Hinsdale, voiced her concens about the effects of the sale.
“Communities along the EJ&E line, including Naperville, are still trying to determine the total cost of mitigating the impact of the additional trains. And while we don’t know the exact cost yet, you can be sure that it’s going to be much more than the total $40 million that CN is currently offering,” Biggert said. “In fact, $40 million is the amount that the city of Naperville estimates it will cost to construct one – just one – grade separation. And that’s just one in more than 40 towns traversed by the EJ&E.”
On Tuesday CN filed a request with the STB seeking a timeline for completion of the required Environmental Impact Statement, along with a final decision by Dec. 1. Friday U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois and U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean, D-Barrington, sent a letter to the STB urging the Board to reject CN’s request.
“For a case and level of involvement that has been recognized by all participants and the STB to be unprecendented, an EIS process that is completed in less than the typical time from of 18 months to several years, as cited by the Board as an average, would jeopardize the ability of the STB to do the comprehensive investigation warranted and undermine the credibility and authority of hte EIS rcommendations,” said the Durbin/Bean press release.