(The following appeared on the Journal of Commerce website on January 19, 2009.)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Surface Transportation Board has denied petitions to stay its decision approving Canadian National’s purchase of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern, which is scheduled to become official Jan. 23.
The purchase of the EJ&E is part of CN’s plan to route trains around the congestion of Chicago.
Refuting claims that environmental concerns were not addressed, the board said in a Jan. 16 decision that it “determined that the adverse environmental effects that some communities on the EJ&E line will experience are outweighed by the substantial transportation benefits that will result from making CN’s rail service more efficient and the environmental benefits that will result from reducing congestion on CN’s existing rail lines in Chicago.”
The board also imposed extensive environmental mitigation conditions to minimize and in some cases eliminate potential adverse environmental impacts.
Elsewhere, a group of suburban Chicago leaders called the Regional Answer to Canadian National Coalition filed an emergency petition asking a U.S. Appeals Court to review both the sale and the group’s claim that the STB ignored its concerns.