Officials not listening on Barrington underpass

I see the problems with the EJ&E Railway as far more serious than being categorized as "complaints." People are going to lose their homes! Well, you say, not many. Try to imagine it was you having to move and that perhaps the selling price of the home is not enough to buy another. Or perhaps you will be losing some of your property to allow the building of the underpass. Compensation may not adequately cover the loss of amenities, and then maybe you will not be able to sell your home. What do you do then, with all the noise of these trains and the fact that you cannot get away from it?

That underpass should never be allowed as it will be the end of the Barrington reputation for beauty and prosperity. How can three people (the federal Surface Transportation Board) wield such power over so many people's lives, well-being and prosperity?

I am really scared that there will be some sort of catastrophe, as has happened in other villages. There have been two explosions where the rolling stock has ignited due to the bad condition of the rail cars. At least Canadian National should guarantee our safety with new, first-rate stock that is up to regulatory standards. Another statement, which I find really worrying, is "the course of Flint Creek will be diverted." Flint Creek feeds into and out of Lake Louise on Fox Point. This could very well lead to another calamity with huge flooding, or to an empty crater for a lake.

I do not understand a situation where thousands of citizens went to Barrington High School to protest this, and these three people took not the slightest notice of our pleading, our reasoning or our protesting. Stay angry, my friends.

Maureen Yates

Barrington