Railway deal slowed by environmental study

Safety, environmental and quality of life issues will all be analyzed by the U.S. Surface Transportation Board before it decides if Canadian National's proposed purchase of the Elgin Joliet & Eastern Railway Co. can go through.

The Surface Transportation Board announced that its upcoming environmental impact study on the purchase will focus on 15 areas.

In the statement on what will be studied, Anne Quinlan, the Surface Transportation Board's acting secretary, said numerous safety issues will be looked at.

"The Environmental Impact Study will evaluate the effects of the proposed acquisition on the safety of the public at large (including such issues as increased probability of train accidents and derailments due to increased proposed acquisition-related train traffic on a system-wide basis), potential effects at grade crossings and potential effects of increased proposed transaction-related freight traffic on commuter and intercity passenger service operations," she wrote.

Other issues to be studied include potential impacts of transporting hazardous materials on the railway and what effect the sale could have on both local and national transportation systems, like Metra and Amtrak.

The study will look at potential impacts through 2015.

The issues to be studied were raised both orally and in writing by area residents.

In January, the Surface Transportation Board held 14 public meetings, which more than 2,500 people attended, throughout Illinois and Indiana to give residents an opportunity to express their concerns over the sale.

CN is proposing a $300 million acquisition of the EJ&E, which runs in an arc from Waukegan to Gary, Ind. The line would become a bypass route for CN freight trains.

Surface Transportation officials said they expect a draft of the study to be finished by this summer.

Following that, residents will have a chance to review the draft and express further concerns before a final study is completed.

To view all the items that will be included in the environmental impact study, visit www.stb.dot.gov. Look under the "E-library" and "Decisions and Notices" sections.