(The following story by Christina Chapman appeared on the Suburban Chicago News website on April 20.)
MORRIS, Ill. — Like many of its neighbors, Grundy County also opposes the sale of the Elgin Joliet and Eastern Railway to Canadian National Railway, but officials say they can be swayed.
The Grundy County Board approved a resolution “supporting continued industrial rail service on the EJ&E railroad in Grundy County.”
It formally opposes the sale, unless CN will continue rail service to the county’s heavy industrial corridors, which are on U.S. 6 and south of the Illinois River. This means CN would have to continue service for the Illinois River Line and its joint lead track.
“Potentiality we could lose vital services to our industrial sectors. It’s not only important to Grundy, but to Illinois as well,” said County Administrator Dan Duffy.
EJ&E currently employees some of the county’s largest employers, said Nancy Norton Ammer, CEO of the Grundy Economic Development Council. These companies include Exelon, Lyondell, Aux Sable Liquid Products, Sapa, Akzo Nobel and Reichhold.
In addition, EJ&E serves Midwest Generation’s Collins Station in rural Morris. It stopped generating power in 2004, but the county hopes to redevelop the property and rail service is needed to do so.
CN has not indicated if it will or will not continue the service to Grundy, but even if it does continue, Ammer said CN also needs to keep up the current level of service provided.
“We’re not against the sale, but we want assurance from CN it will continue to service our industrial customers at a competitive rate,” she said.
There is an additional concern on whether CN will go forward with fixing the old rail bridge that goes over the Illinois River near Dresden Generating Station. EJ&E has $11 million toward the project, but needs $6 million more to reconstruct it, Ammer said.
“It may be another issue that makes them not want to follow through with the investment,” she said.
CN wants to buy the 198-mile EJ&E line to route trains away from Chicago’s backed up rail lines. EJ&E owns rail passing through several Will and Grundy county towns.