DAVENPORT, Iowa — The second in a series of comment sessions on the draft environmental report for the proposed Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger was held Tuesday evening in Davenport, with Iowa residents questioning whether the report from the Surface Transportation Board’s Office of Environmental Assessment accurately reflected the impact on their communities.
The Quad Cities Times reports more than 100 people attended the meeting, with several speakers focusing on safety concerns, as was the case at a Monday meeting in Itasca, Ill. [see “Chicago suburbs focus on safety in attacking CP-KCS environmental report,” Trains News Wire, Sept. 13, 2022].
The Times reports former Davenport Mayor Bill Gluba told the meeting that “thousands of people could be killed” in a derailment in the riverfront area that hosts large public events, saying the merger is “a disaster of monumental proportions just waiting to happen.”
Gluba had lobbied against the $10 million agreement between CP and Davenport to mitigate merger impacts [see “Former mayor urges Davenport …,” News Wire, Aug. 5, 2022]. Communities including Bettendorf and Muscatine have reached similar agreements to address the increase in traffic along CP’s Marquette Subdivision, which could see the number of freight trains grow from eight to 22 daily.
WQAD-TV reports speakers included Andrew Kida, city administrator of Camanche, Iowa, which turned down a reported $200,000 offer from the railroad to address impacts of the merger.
“Our request should not require grant funding from the federal and state government with what CP has presented,” Kida said. “The mitigation should be the sole responsibility of Canadian Pacific. It should not be the responsibility of the citizens of Camanche or the US taxpayers.” Kida claimed CP representatives have been “intimidating and threatening” in meetings.
KWQC-TV quotes Walcott, Iowa, resident Veronica Bales’ concerns about noise impacts of the merger, with Bales telling the meeting, “It’s not right to wreck people’s lives just so they can make more money.”
The public meetings continue today (Wednesday, Sept. 14) in Excelsior Springs, Missouri, and Thursday in Beaumont, Texas.
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