(The following article by Yvette Craig was posted on the Nashville Tennessean website on September 1.)
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A Tennessee Valley Authority plan to resume coal train deliveries through Sumner County was derailed yesterday, sending waves of relief among local officials and residents who feared the move would jeopardize their safety, health and economic growth.
Tom Kilgore, president and chief operating officer of TVA, sent a letter with his decision to Gallatin Mayor Don Wright yesterday afternoon.
“I have decided not to pursue the transportation of coal by rail to the Gallatin Fossil Plant at this time,” Kilgore said in the letter. “I am not convinced that the best decision can be made in the short time we have. However, TVA will continue to evaluate all delivery options to mitigate the increasing cost of coal deliveries.”
The rail company that hoped to haul the coal said it was disappointed.
“We respect the fact that it’s TVA’s decision, and we hope in the future to have the opportunity to work with TVA in Gallatin,” said Meg Scheu, a CSX Corp. spokeswoman.
Escalating fuel costs and record-breaking demand for electricity forced TVA to seek cost-saving measures. After an eight-year hiatus, TVA considered a return to the days when coal was brought in by rail instead of by barge.
Backed by an army of opponents to the plan, Wright said the coal train, pulling as many as 135 cars each time, would block key intersections for as long as 23 minutes, especially in Gallatin.
Many worried that the length of the coal-laden trains would result in long traffic jams, dangerous waits for emergency vehicles and increased pollution. Some also expressed concern that the trains would hamper the area’s quality of life and compromise the economic base of the city of 26,000.
“When train cars moved through here carrying coal in the 1990s, our city had died,” Wright said. “Now we’re flourishing, and I was devastated to think that it might once again diminish. … This whole city is elated.”
In his desperation to keep the coal trains from making deliveries to the Gallatin Fossil Plant, the mayor called President Bush about the issue two weeks ago. Wright said White House officials called him twice requesting details of the plan.
“I wasn’t going to leave any doors unclosed,” said Wright, who moved to Gallatin 35 years ago when there was just one stoplight in town.
Sumner County Emergency Medical Services officials said the trains could have blocked four major thoroughfares through town, creating life-threatening delays. In July alone, emergency workers responded to more than 570 calls, said Keith Douglas, assistant director of the county’s EMS department.
“The danger or potential for someone’s life to be in danger is definitely averted by this decision,” Douglas said.