Bean Testifies at STB Hearing on CN

PUBLISHED: April 28, 2010

WASHINGTON - Congresswoman Melissa Bean testified today at the start of a hearing by the Surface Transportation Board (STB) to examine the results of their recent independent audit, which documented severe blockage of road crossings along the Canadian National (CN) Railway expansion and a failure by CN to disclose this information to regulators.

"I urge the STB to use its full authority to levy fines and reassess the terms of its Approval Decision," Bean told the board. "So far, CN's promises to work with communities and keep their commitments have proven false."

Barrington Mayor Karen Darch, co-chair of The Regional Answer to Canadian National (TRAC), a community coalition opposed to the merger, attended the hearing as well.

"We believe today's hearing was a good start in addressing CN's lack of credibility on reporting about its operational impacts in the region." Darch said following the hearing. "But it is imperative that the Board  forcefully demonstrate that there are consequences for CN when it misleads the Board, and that increased mitigation is a tool it can and will use to send that message."

In January, newly confirmed STB Chairman Daniel Elliot ordered an independent audit of CN's self-submitted reports to the STB in response to repeated complaints from effected communities about the reports' validity. CN plans to increase rail traffic by 400 to 900 percent along the EJ&E line, which cuts through many suburban Chicago communities.

The hearing lasted over two hours as members of the board questioned CN executives on why the company reported a total only 14 blocked road crossings for longer than ten minutes in November and December 2009. Auditors said the real number of blocked crossings was over 1,400 during the same two-month period.

The board did not make any final decisions at today's hearing, pending completion of a public comment period May 28. Residents interested in registering a comment on this issue with the STB can find a link on the Congresswoman's website: www.house.gov/bean.

The STB approved CN's plan to increase rail traffic along the EJ&E line on December 24, 2008. Bean and  a bi-partisan coalition of suburban Illinois members, along with local leaders, opposed the acquisition due to significant threats to communities' first-responder capabilities, traffic congestion, environment and quality of life.