CN responds to merger worries
To the editor: As a Daily Herald editorial recently noted ("Quit wailing, start seeing rail partnerships"), CN's proposed acquisition of the EJ&E railroad would "help fix the freight gridlock afflicting Chicago and the Midwest."
The Chicago area may be known as the transportation hub of North America, but these days it can take a freight train more than 24 hours to travel 30 miles here.
The CN-EJ&E transaction has powerful economic and environmental benefits for the greater Chicago area, which needs solutions to rail and roadway congestion. Freight trains are three times more efficient and emit one-third less pollution than trucks carrying comparable loads. One typical freight train carries the equivalent of 280 trucks.
Unfortunately, Mr. Arthur Holzknecht of Barrington ("Lots of missing facts in editorial") misstates many facts as he looks at the proposal solely through a local lens.
While 34 communities will experience an increase in rail traffic through this shift to the EJ&E, 80 other communities will experience a reduction in freight traffic. In Barrington, the average number of freight trains daily will increase from five to 20. Mr. Holzknecht's speculations of increases beyond that are simply unsupported by the facts.
Moreover, the increase in rail traffic in Barrington should be considered next to that of other suburbs in our busy metropolitan area. According to the Regional Transportation Authority, 106 Metra trains, six Amtrak trains and more than 100 freight trains pass through towns like Downers Grove, LaGrange, Lisle and Naperville on a daily basis.
Regarding CN's safety record, Federal Railway Administration statistics show that CN operates one of America's safest railroads in the nation. Federal authorities also consider freight trains the safest and most secure means to transport goods.
CN's purchase of the EJ&E is a privately-funded partial solution to a regional transportation issue. In fact, CN's $400 million private investment in the EJ&E provides the regional CREATE plan a significant head-start in reducing congestion. According to CREATE, if regional rail congestion goes unchecked, Chicago could lose $2 billion in production and 17,000 jobs over the next two decades.
From the beginning, CN has agreed with the need for community input on this proposal. Our application to the Surface Transportation Board acknowledged that the transaction would require environmental review, including the potential of an Environmental Impact Statement that the STB has now ordered.
We are working with communities along the EJ&E --including Barrington -- to find practical ways to balance the specific needs of communities with the Chicago area's need for a cleaner, safer, and more efficient rail transportation network.
Gordon Trafton
Senior Vice-President
CN Southern Region
Homewood