Barrington takes rail sale fight downtown

The Barrington-area community continued its fight Thursday over the proposed purchase of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway Co.

Elected officials, emergency response personnel and residents spoke out on the proposed sale of the rail line, which runs right through the heart of their community.

The group gathered at the Thompson Center in Chicago just before Thursday's hearing on the issue in front of the General Assembly's railroad safety committee.

Barrington Village President Karen Darch said the sale poses numerous safety concerns, including the ability for firefighters and paramedics to reach residents in life-threatening situations.

"This is about life or death for our communities," Darch said.

Canadian National is proposing a $300 million acquisition of the EJ&E, which runs in an arc from Waukegan to Gary, Ind., through Lake, Cook, DuPage and Will counties.

CN plans to make the line a bypass route for freight traffic from its Canadian and U.S. rail network. Company officials say that would benefit the Chicago region as a whole.

"It is all about efficiency," spokesman Jim Kvedaras said.

It now takes freight trains about 24 hours to get through the Chicago region, he said, adding that if the sale were approved, that time could drop in half.

But the Barrington area has been vocal in its opposition to the sale, which could bring an additional 15 freight trains through the area each day.

Mike Deering, spokesman for Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital, said the line essentially bisects the hospital's service area. If trains block crossings, ambulances could be delayed in getting patients to the hospital.

"Lives will be lost because of these rolling barriers," he said.

Among those at the gathering to show their opposition to the sale were Barrington Area Unit District 220 Superintendent Tom Leonard, Barrington Fire Chief Jim Arie, North Barrington Village President Bruce Sauer, Hoffman Estates Village President Bill McLeod and several of his trustees.

"This affects communities way beyond the Barrington area," McLeod said.

CN officials have said 80 towns will benefit from the sale because they'd see less freight traffic. But Darch believes that would be only temporary.

"There will only be a short-term move off of those lines," Darch said, saying CN could sell or lease those lines to another rail company.

Kvedaras said at this time there's no indication the existing line would be used by another freight company.

Following the rally, officials from the Illinois Department of Transportation, the Illinois Commerce Commission and the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning testified in front of the state railroad safety panel, chaired by Rep. Elaine Nekritz of Northbrook.

She said the hearing's goal was not to debate the merits of the proposed sale but "to figure out what the state's role (in the sale) is."

Representatives from each agency said it's too early in the process to say whether they would support it.

"There are a lot of substantive questions that still need to be addressed," IDOT Chief of Staff Clayton Harris III said.

The agencies are waiting to see results of the U.S. Surface Transportation Board's environmental impact study, now being conducted. No date for when that will be completed has been released.

"We simply do not have enough information yet to determine whether this acquisition is in the region's best interest," said Randy Blankenhorn, executive director for the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning.

Nekritz said she plans to study the materials presented Thursday before deciding what action the committee should take next.