The comment period on the draft scope of study has closed. The next opportunity for public review and comment will occur after the release of the Draft Environment Impact Statement.

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Welcome to the website for information regarding the Surface Transportation Board's environmental review of the proposed Canadian National Railway Company acquisition of the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway Company.

Use the navigation buttons to the left to view information about the environmental study currently underway.

Project Overview

On October 30, 2007, Canadian National Railway Company (CN) (along with its U.S. subsidiary, Grand Trunk Corporation), filed an application with the Surface Transportation Board (Board) seeking to acquire EJ&E West Company, a wholly owned noncarrier subsidiary of Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway Company (EJ&E).

CN is one of Canada's two major railroads. It extends from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to Vancouver and Prince Rupert, British Columbia. EJ&E is a Class II railroad that currently operates over 198 miles of track in northeastern Illinois and northwestern Indiana, consisting primarily of an arc around Chicago, Illinois. This arc extends from Waukegan, Illinois, southward to Joliet, Illinois, then eastward to Gary, Indiana, and then northwest to South Chicago, Illinois, along Lake Michigan, as shown in the inset image. EJ&E provides rail service to approximately 100 customers, including steel mills, coal utilities, plastics and chemical producers, steel processors, distribution centers, and scrap processors.

CN's proposed acquisition of EJ&E would shift rail traffic currently moving over CN's rail lines inside the EJ&E arc in Chicago to EJ&E rail lines, which traverse the suburbs generally to the west and south of Chicago. Rail traffic on CN lines inside the EJ&E arc would generally decrease. The decreases in rail traffic would be offset by increases in the number of trains operating on the EJ&E rail line outside of Chicago (approximately 15 to 27 more trains would operate on various segments of the EJ&E rail lines).

CN plans to construct six new rail-to-rail connections between existing rail lines and the newly acquired EJ&E line at the following locations:

1. Munger, Illinois
2. Joliet, Illinois
3. Matteson, Illinois
4. Griffith, Indiana
5. Ivanhoe, Indiana
6. Kirk Yard (Gary), Indiana

In addition to the six new rail-to-rail connections, CN plans to construct 19 miles of new sidings and double tracking at the following Illinois locations:

1. Leithton (near Libertyville)
2. Between East Siding/Eola and Walker
3. Between East Joliet and Frankfort

Applicants state three primary purposes for pursuing the Control Transaction. First, they believe the Control Transaction would improve their operations in and beyond the Chicago area by providing CN with a continuous rail route around Chicago, under applicants' ownership, that would connect the five CN lines that presently radiate from Chicago. Second, acquiring EJ&E's rail assets would make available to applicants EJ&E's Kirk Yard--an automated classification facility in Gary--as well as smaller facilities in Joliet and Whiting, IN, thus enabling applicants to consolidate car classification work at Kirk and East Joliet Yards and to reduce use of the Belt Railway Company of Chicago's (BRC) Clearing Yard. Lastly, applicants state that their system would benefit from the fact that EJ&E provides an important supply line for North American steel, chemical, and petrochemical industries, as well as for Chicago area utilities and others, which would allow applicants to develop closer and more extensive relationships with companies in and serving those industries.

To thoroughly assess the potential environmental impacts that may result from the proposed acquisition, the Board through its Section of Environmental Analysis (SEA), will prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Learn more about the EIS process on the Environmental Review Process page.