New Lenox Rail Sense

December 6, 2008 / By PATRICK FERRELL / Joliet Herald News

The Surface Transportation Board on Friday released its final environment study on the impact of  Canadian National’s plan to buy 198 miles of Elgin, Joliet & Eastern railroad. Not surprisingly, the report encompasses much of what was in the preliminary report released in July.

It prescribes mitigation for only eight road crossings — including Plainfield-Naperville Road in Plainfield and Woodruff Road and Washington Street in Joliet — to counter traffic congestion that would “likely” be worsened by CN’s plan to bring more frequent and longer trains to tracks stretching from northwest Indiana to Chicago’s northern suburbs.

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SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD ISSUES FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT FOR PROPOSED CANADIAN NATIONAL RAILWAY ACQUISITION OF ELGIN, JOLIET & EASTERN RAILWAY

December 5, 2008 / Press release from Surface Transportation Board

The Surface Transportation Board announced today that its Section of Environmental Analysis (SEA) has issued the Final Environmental Impact Statement (Final EIS) for the proposed acquisition by the Canadian National Railway and Grand Trunk Corporation of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway (EJ&E).

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CHICAGO, Nov 24, 2008 /PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX/ — Coalition demands that the record be set straight prior to final ruling

On November 18, the environmental staff (SEA) of the Surface Transportation Board (STB) and its consulting firm, HDR, presented its environmental analysis of CN’s acquisition of the EJ&E to the three board members of the STB. While this briefing was open for public observation, the public could not participate in the proceedings or ask any questions.

As an observer, TRAC concluded that this event demonstrated that the environmental staff either does not recognize that its environmental analysis is materially flawed or knows it is flawed but has decided to muddle through in the hope that it can paper over the flaws in the final EIS.

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September 22, 2008 / By Joseph Hillenmeyer / Frankfort Station

With the Tuesday, Sept. 30, deadline quickly approaching, Frankfort Mayor Jim Holland and trustees received a final briefing by the Louis Berger Group and the Winston & Strawn law firm on what the village and its residents can do to win the final battle in the war with Canadian National (CN).

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September 17, 2008 / By SUSAN DeMAR LAFFERTY / Joliet Herald News

FRANKFORT - “Unacceptable” and “inadequate” was how Frankfort’s experts summed up the draft environmental impact study on the Canadian National Railway’s proposed acquisition of EJ&E Railway.

In a presentation to Frankfort officials this week, environmental experts from Louis Berger Group said the federal government’s roughly 4,000-page document does not determine the specific impact on Frankfort and issues that are cited do not factor into growth beyond 2015.

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September 9, 2008 / By Richard Wronski / Chicago Tribune reporter

Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, the area’s top planning body, made the draft letter public Tuesday

If the Canadian National Railway wants to prove its commitment to solving traffic problems caused by its plan to acquire a suburban railroad, it should set aside $150 million to help pay for overpasses and other improvements.

That is the message contained in a draft of a letter to federal regulators from the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, the region’s top planning body. The letter was made public Tuesday.

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September 9, 2008 / by the Associated Press

CHICAGO - The U.S. Surface Transportation Board has rejected Canadian National Railway’s request for early approval of a plan to buy the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway.

Officials of the regulatory agency said Monday acting quickly would violate its environmental review process.

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August 11, 2008 / By Laura Michaels / New Lenox Patriot

Federal court might be the next stop for Canadian National after the U.S. Surface Transportation Board declined to commit to issuing a final ruling on the purchase of the EJ&E tracks before Dec. 31.

Since the July 25 release of the STB’s Draft Environmental Impact Study (Draft EIS), and a hearing Tuesday, Aug. 5, in Chicago among the area’s suburban congressional leaders, CN officials have said legal recourse is one option they are considering to ensure a decision is made before their agreement with U.S. Steel (which owns the EJ&E) expires. 

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July 30, 2008 By ANDRE SALLES / Aurora Beacon News

If Canadian National Railway Company ends up buying the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern rail line, some expensive work at some of the busier crossings will likely be required.

But those upgrades may cost hundreds of millions of dollars and take years to complete, according to local communities along the line.  And no one is quite sure who will pay for the work.

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July 30, 2008 / Company Press Release

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - CN (TSX:CNR) (NYSE:CNI) said today that the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) issued on July 25, 2008, by the Section of Environmental Analysis (SEA) of the Surface Transportation Board (STB) on the company’s proposed acquisition of the principal lines of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway Company (EJ&E) is an important step in the regulatory process. The DEIS outlines the environmental effects of the transaction on local communities and potential mitigation. The agency established a 60-day period for public comments on the DEIS, including eight public hearings, which will be followed by SEA’s preparation of the final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and a final regulatory decision by the STB.