WASHINGTON — In their latest bid to delay the Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger, four members of the Illinois congressional delegation have cited the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment as a reason the Surface Transportation Board should subject the merger to further review.
In a letter to STB Chairman Martin J. Oberman dated Thursday, Feb. 23, U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, along with U.S. Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi and Delia Ramirez, argue the board should delay its decision “until it further reviews the increased transportation of hazardous materials that would result from the merger.”
The letter claims that “CP and KCS both have histories of train derailments causing hazardous material spills, and any increases in the amount of hazardous materials transported as a result of the proposed merger would put communities across the country at greater risk of a dangerous accident.” It cites a finding in the board’s final Environmental Impact Statement that estimates the merger would result in an increase in the amount of hazardous material transported on 141 of 178 rail segments on the combined rail system.
“We are concerned that this increase puts CP’s Central Corridor, which passes through Chicago, particularly at risk since the route transports intermodal containers carrying fertilizers, crude oil, and chemicals from the Port of Vancouver,” the letter reads. “… We are deeply concerned that the increased transport of unknown chemicals puts Illinoisan lives at dangers and risks the Chicago suburbs suffering similar devastation to that of East Palestine. Public and environmental safety must be a top priority in the STB’s review of the proposed CP-KCS merger.”
Earlier this month, the same four legislators asked the STB to delay its decision until it undertook a separate assessment of the merger on the Chicago area [see “Illinois legislators again ask STB to delay decision …,” Trains News Wire, Feb. 20, 2023]. That letter, sent to the board Feb. 17, made no mention of the derailment or hazardous-material issue, even though it was sent two weeks after the accident in East Palestine.
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