CN should help pay for over- or underpass at Route 14

I am wondering how residents of Barrington and surrounding areas think about the project on Hwy. 14 for the railway. Are you as disturbed and worried about it as I am?

The first meeting about this railway took place at the Barrington High School gym and around 9,000 people came to voice opposition. Resident after resident spoke to the Surface Transportation Board, appealing the Canadian National Railway's plans to run an enormous number of trains through our small village.

Some expressed outrage, some cried! Peter and I put our names down to speak and left when, at 11:30 p.m., we still had not been called, since I was exhausted.

Melissa Bean, our congresswoman at that time, made a very good speech. I remember one of the lines, “You cannot expect these people to pay for this in their taxes and then not receive any benefit from the railway company.” I thoroughly concur. The decision by the STB was, as expected, for CN and against Barrington.

We are going to be paying for this in our taxes and this is exactly what the IDOT representatives told me at the meeting. There is no money coming from anywhere else and I believe that, as CN is the beneficiary of this, they should be contributing part of the millions it is going to cost. Lake Zurich residents did not pay for the railway bridge over Route 12 and, although Route 12 has a lot of traffic, Route 14 is comparable. Why should we be forced to pay for alleviation of traffic problems caused by CN?

There are other considerations. Are homes to be lost? What is the compensation? Is Flint Creek to be diverted? What about flooding? There are important decisions being made which affect our lives.

Maureen E. Yates

Barrington