WASHINGTON – Illinois Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, along with two of the state’s representatives, have told federal regulators that they oppose the merger of Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern, citing projections of increased freight traffic in Chicago and its suburbs.
“The proposed merger will reportedly more than triple freight rail traffic on the CP rail line that runs between Bensenville and Elgin, Illinois. We are concerned this increase will have significant impacts on noise, emergency response time, commuter rail operations, the environment, and pedestrian safety. We oppose the merger as currently proposed, and we urge the Surface Transportation Board (STB) to give our concerns all due consideration as you review the proposed merger and consider potential mitigation and oversight measures,” Durbin, Duckworth, and Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi and Marie Newman wrote in a July 25 letter to STB Chairman Martin J. Oberman.
They note that Metra, the Chicago-area commuter railroad, and the Coalition to Stop CPKC have raised objections to the merger. The coalition includes eight communities that line CP’s Elgin Subdivision.
“The safety and livelihood of our Illinois communities must be a top priority as the STB considers this merger. Local residents, emergency response teams, and elected officials have voiced serious concerns about the impacts of increasing the number of freight trains running through their communities. In addition, Metra has expressed concern that the merger could cause a significant increase in delays to commuter rail,” the Democrats wrote.
They also urged board members to visit Illinois to hear directly from communities that would be affected by the merger.
CP has told the STB that the merger would have no impact on Metra’s operations. Traffic on the Milwaukee District West line west of Bensenville Yard will see an increase of eight trains per day, CP says, but the line has plenty of capacity.
CP also has told the board that NIMBY opposition in the Chicago area was “outrageous.”
“The Coalition to Stop CPKC’s demand for more than nine billion dollars in infrastructure investments to address the addition of only eight additional freight to lines that daily host upwards of 70 total trains (including Metra passenger trains), and have historically hosted more freight trains than CPKC will operate, is particularly egregious,” the railroads told the board this month. “They are happy to have CPKC’s anticipated freight traffic foisted on other communities but not in their backyards.”
John H: Are the two mentioned/pictured up for re-election?
Alan: So true your advise, we shall see. endmrw0728221024
Talk is cheap. These statements first aimed their constitutents. If future statements are few and far between then that is all the statements were for public consumption. Many actual actions would mean real opposition. In between, who knows.
The size Double-D of Congress. Duckworth and Durbin.
Why are they against it? Because CP and KCS has not given enough money to their campaign coffers. But CN has!
So they will say no until CPKC coughs up some of its own dough to grease the rails, provides some donations (kickbacks) to some Democratic party aligned initiatives.
The fact that these two waited until just before the STB hearing to declare their intent says more about them than it does about their opinion.
Look for some otherworldly concessions, like hydrogen fueled power in 2 years or something to that effect.
“Why are they against it? Because CP and KCS has not given enough money to their campaign coffers. But CN has!”
Citations, please (or it didn’t happen).
Perhaps that was a rhetorical question. Politicians use them quite frequently.
Maybe CPKC hasn’t made a political donation yet. Instead, maybe significant campaign contributions have come from the Coalition to Stop CPKC, aka, the NIMBYs, and members of the eight communities. We are now heading into election season. So, that’s another reason for their 11th hour letter to STB.
I was being factitious.
I had tried to post some links to the various disclosure sites for political giving, but it appears the Trains blog filter doesn’t allow it.
Ref. All comments above that reference to “common sense” and real FACTS, past and present, they are “dead on”.
How come there is so much ignorant talk from legislators? Lobbying. Those guys get paid to twist the arm of legislators. Now a good “statesman” would check with his constituents, rather than the “politician” listening to big bucks companies lobbyist. endmrw0726221323 IMHO
If I remember correctly from the maps of this proposed merger, it seems CP has a line well to the west of the Chicago area running from the Twin Cities to Kansas City. Theoretically, they could bypass Chicago entirely for traffic to and from KCS.
It’s fairly circuitous- not direct like the UP’s ex-Rock Island Spine Line- but yes, CP does have a line from St Paul to Kansas City that doesn’t involve Chicago. It runs on the west bank of the Mississippi to Muscatine, Iowa, where it turns inland to run through southeast Iowa and northern Missouri. Ironically, it joins the Spine Line a few dozen miles outside of KC in a holdover from when original operators Milwaukee Road and Rock Island jointly built a new route roughly 100 years ago.
I would love to ask every elected official mentioned in this article if they know that Metra actually owns both lines (C&M Sub south of Rondout and Elgin Sub, Tower A5-Big Timber Road) projected to see an increase in freight train numbers should this merger be approved. Then I would like to ask if they know CP has the train dispatching rights to these Metra-owned territories and ask if there are any other examples in the U.S. where a foreign national freight railroad gets to dispatch a publicly-owned U.S. commuter rail property where the commuter railroad is responsible for all engineering functions (track&signal). And then I’d like to hit them with the average numbers of freight trains that for decades have been and continue to be operated on the likes of the BNSF and UP Chicago and Geneva Subs respectively. I’m sure I’d get blank stares from all these folks to all those questions.
Had the Class One railroads not spent the past generation alienating rail labor, shippers, passengers, rail advocates and trackside communities with their irresponsible and short-sighted antics, and had they behaved as good responsible corporate citizens and neighbors, then this fight might not have gained such traction.
Political buffoonery is bipartisan here in Illinois. While Durbin and Duckworth are idiots, Republican Don Manzullo, with his talk of “monster trains” stalking the NIMBY’s of Barrington, was their equal in stupidity during the CN-EJ&E merger. It was CN’s capitulation to this kind of nonsense (remember turtle underpasses) that set the tone for today.
James, I sure hope you DO get an invite to testify (coming up in Sept. 3 days). They need to see your encore performance. endmrw0726221031
P.S. Kudo’s Charles. Your comment says it all.
These two were my Senators and are pretty bright. Not sure why they would jump on-board this one without all the information. Their respective staffs need to point out to them at one time twice as many freights used that line with some days more.
I get that there may only be a handful of additional freights on this line. And I hear the argument that, historically, the line has handled a larger number of trains. But I sense a bit of disingenuousness here. How many of those “historical” freights were PSR-length trains? During those “historical” times, how many ‘scoots’ did Metra (or its predecessors) run in amongst those (probably shorter) freights? How long were grade crossings in and around the junctions tied up historically vs. would be under the merger proposal?
To be sure, there is a strong aroma of NIMBY-ism here. There is also more than a small whiff of lies, damn lies and statistics. What I’d like to see is cars-per-hour on the various segments during those “historical” times vs. under the new scheme. And perhaps, total times various key grade crossings were blocked during these “historical” times vs. what would be under the merger. Then we (and the good Senators) can tell which one of these sides is blowing smoke.
(Note: It is entirely possible both sides are blowing smoke. Proper model analysis would likely identify the blower(s)).
Jay, I think you may be correct about both sides but let’s remember the stunt METRA pulled with their modelling numbers and “Oops” their first set of numbers were incorrect and they were “sorry”. Their “revised” set of numbers for delays and problems were much lower. The railroads were there BEFORE your nice little suburb and bought a house there. Having grown up along the UP-North like in Highland Park where there are 2 trains every hour, they should deal with it.
First, our local nickname for Sen. Durbin is “Do-nothing-Dick”. Second, when I testified at the Chicago public hearing for CN-EJE I observed that being shocked and surprised by railroad grade crossing delays in the Chicago Region was like being shocked and surprised to find gambling in the backroom of Rick’s Cafe in Casablanca. My comments got the biggest laughs of the night and even the STB staffers seem amused as well. I would be very happy to provide an encore performance if the opportunity presents itself.
If I lived in the the USA I would be more considered about preserving democracy, than train traffic.
In their minds it’s the same thing.
To call these politicians idiots would be a way undeserved compliment.
If they knew anything about the state they represent in Congress they’d know that freight trains run through Chicago and suburbia.
These fools are so predictable when they obsess over a small handful of more freights. Dozens of freights roll through Elmhurst, Lake Forest, Deerfield, LaGrange, Western Springs and other delightful suburbs with no ill effect whatsoever. In my area, CP runs very long freights through the downtown centers of Elm Grove and Wauwatosa, two very livable suburbs, causing zero problems. This time tomorrow I’ll be eating breakfast at an Elm Grove restaurant watching the show. I don’t ever see any Elm Grove residents running for cover when the crossing gates go down.
Good for CPKC’s response in the last paragraph of this news article. NIMBYs are nothing but a bunch of worthless spoiled children. Maybe these NIMBYs should read these news articles to see how super-difficult are the jobs of professional T&E and M/W and Mechanical crews, so that the NIMBYs can have their suburban standard of living with all the comforts and privileges.
You’re right Charles. Calling these politicians idiots is way too kind.
Durbin in particular.