Mundelein keeps up the fight on rail fines

Mundelein officials hope the U.S. Supreme Court will reverse an Illinois judicial decision invalidating laws that fine trains for blocking crossings.

The village board this week hired an attorney to petition the high court to hear the case, which centered on a 3-year-old dispute between Mundelein and the Wisconsin Central Railroad. That firm now is owned by Canadian National Railway.

Most requests to be heard by the Supreme Court are denied, but local officials believe their case has merit and has a reasonable chance of getting on the court's docket.

If unable to punish the rail companies for blocking roadways, Mundelein residents are at their "complete mercy," Mayor Kenneth H. Kessler said.

"(The trains) not only impede our ability to get through town, but it also presents a safety issue (for ambulances) trying to get to Condell," Kessler said, referring to the medical center in neighboring Libertyville.

A Canadian National spokesman declined to comment on the case.

Mundelein's latest action comes about a month after the Illinois Supreme Court threw out local and state laws that fined train companies for blocking roads for long periods of time.

The case that reached the state's highest court was triggered by a 2005 incident in which a Wisconsin Central train blocked Hawley Street in Mundelein for more than 2½ hours.

The Illinois justices ruled a federal railroad safety law pre-empted Mundelein's railroad ordinance, which was modeled after a state law. As a result, Wisconsin Central did not have to pay $14,000 in fines levied by the village.

A Lake County circuit judge had ruled for the village, but the verdict was overturned by an appellate court. The state supreme court backed the appellate decision Jan. 25.

The village board Monday agreed to hire attorney Lani Williams of a Wisconsin-based group called the Local Government Lawyers Roundtable to pursue the matter with the nation's highest court. The organization aims to help local government attorneys deal with legal issues.

The firm will be paid $15,000 to file the appropriate petition with the Supreme Court.

Crossing blockages already have increased in Mundelein since the Illinois Supreme Court's ruling, officials said.

With Canadian National poised to acquire the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway Co., Kessler fears traffic delays caused by train stoppages will worsen.