Canadian National Railroad Construction Update

Matteson CN/EJ&E Project Update - September 6

Please continue to use the walkway created between the temporary fences between the parking lot and station entrance to enter the tunnel during this stage of construction.
This week CN will continue to install steel I-beams to help support the new rail bridge that will be going over the new commuter walkway and ramp, Also crews will continue pouring concrete for the new abutments and retaining walls that will support the new northeast connection. A new fenced walkway has been opened just south of the old walkway please follow the signage to the new walkway. On top of the embankment, crews continue to install stone to create the track bed for the future tracks.

Matteson CN/EJ&E Project Update - Week of August 2nd:

Crews will continue demolition of the commuter station stairway entrance which is being removed to clear room for a future retaining wall being built as part of the new connection. Excavation work and sheet piling to the north of the old station entrance will begin the week of August 1st.
The sheet piling and machinery will be staged behind the temporary fencing at the northwest corner of the parking lot.This ongoing work will result in more construction-related noise, but work is being restricted to the hours of 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., as required under Village ordinance.

Commuters should please continue to use the walkway created between the temporary fences and the temporary ramp to access the station.The temporary ramp will need to be used for the next two months or until the new entrance is completed. Commuters: Please watch for uneven pavement as you exit the west end of parking lot walking toward the Metra station in the fenced pedestrian detour route while asphalt-patching is completed in the area disturbed by conduit installation.

On top of the railroad embankment, crews will continue ongoing track work along the CN north-south main tracks. The new track is needed to connect the north-south mains to the future Matteson Connection track.

Matteson CN/EJ&E Project Update - Week of July 12

Starting July 13th a temporary ramp will be opened for access to the Matteson commuter station.
The temporary ramp will be available until a new station entrance is completed as part of the larger connection project. The new entrance is expected to be completed this fall. Commuters should continue to use the walkway created between the temporary fences. Please watch for uneven pavement as you exit the west end of parking lot walking toward the Metra station in the fenced pedestrian detour route while asphalt-patching is completed in the area disturbed by conduit installation.

ComEd will be removing aerial lines from the utility poles that run alongside the bottom of the railroad embankment and over the existing ramp and staircase. Service will be redirected through the conduits that were installed at the bottom of the embankment, south of the Parking Lot to the west, and north of 216th St. to the east. All parking lot lighting will remain in service during this transition.

CN crews will continue work on installing new, reconfigured track east of Main Street and south of the EJ&E. Crews are creating a temporary connection between the east-west EJ&E and the north-south CN mainline. The temporary connection will make room for a new permanent connection being constructed as part of an overall Matteson connection project. This week's work will not impact motorists crossing the railroad tracks on Main Street.

Matteson CN/EJ&E Project Update - Week of June 7

CN contractors will continue to deliver fill material to the site of the Matteson Connection. Trucks will deliver the fill to the open area south of North Street and west of the water tower. The material, to be used in the construction of new embankment for the rail connection between the EJ&E and CN tracks, will be entering the site primarily via Main Street and 216th Street, but may also be delivered via Western Ave and North Street if necessary.

Please continue to use the walkway created between the temporary fences between the parking lot and station entrance to enter the tunnel during this stage of construction.

CN contractors will continue mobilizing equipment for the construction project.

Also, crews continue the demolition of the existing pavement on the north, west and south ends of the Commuter Parking Lot that will become a future bus lane at the station.

Electrical conduits will be buried just outside of the concrete barriers to the west and southwest of the Commuter Lot for new lighting service. Please watch for uneven pavement as you exit the west end of parking lot walking toward the Metra Station in the fenced pedestrian detour route. Conduits will also be installed under the existing railroad tracks. Equipment for this task will be staged at the bottom of the embankment south of the Parking Lot to the west, and north of 216th Street to the east.

CN crews continue work on removing track and installing new, reconfigured track east of Main Street and south of the EJ&E. Crews are creating a temporary connection between the east-west EJ&E and the north-south CN mainline. The temporary connection will make room for a new permanent connection being constructed as part of an overall Matteson connection project. This week's work will not impact motorists crossing the railroad tracks on Main Street.

Good News: EJ&E Matteson Yard

GOOD NEWS!

We have received good news and I wanted to share it with the residents of Matteson affected by the Canadian National Construction Project.

What Has Happened:
CN crews have removed several of the tracks that make up the EJ&E Matteson Yard, the main source of loud "banging" noises, located south of the Holden Park development.

What This Means:
The removal of the tracks will result in a reduction in railroad switching operations (the physical coupling and uncoupling of railroad cars in preparation for further movement) at that location, but will not totally eliminate the switching activity at this time. Some switching will continue on the remaining two tracks until the entire track reconfiguration project is complete (targeted for mid-2011), when CN will no longer have the need to perform switching activity at that location.

Stay tuned to our website www.villageofmatteson.org for updated construction information related to the entire CN project.

Matteson Connection Project Updates (Week of May 17th):

CN crews will be removing track and installing new, reconfigured track east of Main Street and south of the EJ&E the week of May 17. Crews are creating a temporary connection between the the east-west EJ&E and the north-south CN mainline. The temporary connection will make room for a new permanent connection being constructed as part of a overall Matteson connection project. This week's work will not impact motorists crossing the railroad tracks on Main Street.

CN crews will complete the removal of several tracks making up the EJ&E Matteson Yard along the EJ&E main east of Main Street the week of May 17. The yard is being removed to make room for a realignment of the EJ&E tracks necessary as part of the overall Matteson connection project. This work will not impact motorists crossing the railroad tracks at Main Street.

CN contractors will be delivering fill material to the site of the Matteson Connection project continuing through the week of May 17. Trucks will deliver the fill to the open area south of North Street and west of the water tower. The material, to be used in the construction of new embankment for the rail connection that will allow train movements between the EJ&E and CN tracks, will be delivered over a two week period, entering the site primarily via Main Street and 216th Street, but may also be delivered via Western Ave and North St. if necessary. Both routes have been authorized for this use by the respective villages.

Following the Monday morning rush hour, crews will be placing temporary fences between the parking lot and station entrance to create a path to be used by commuters during this stage of construction.

CN contractors will begin mobilizing equipment in preparation for the construction project.

With equipment in place, crews will begin the demolition of the existing pavement on the north end of the Commuter Parking Lot that will become a future bus lane at the station.

Crews also will be creating new "curb cuts", or removal of curbed areas, to allow vehicular access for the reconfigured Commuter Parking Lot. That work will take place on Homan Avenue at the north end of the Commuter Lot, and at the north side of North Street.

Electrical conduits will be installed just outside of the concrete barriers to the west and south-west of the Commuter Lot for new lighting service. Please watch for uneven pavement as you exit the west end of parking lot walking toward the Metra Station in the fenced pedestrian detour route.

CN Connection Construction

Matteson Connection Updates � May 7

� CN contractors will be delivering fill material to the site of the Matteson connection project beginning the week of May 10. Trucks will deliver the fill to the open area south of North Street and west of the water tower. The material, to be used in the construction of new embankment for the rail connection that will allow train movements between the EJ&E and CN tracks, will be delivered over a two week period.

� Commuters and other interested parties are invited to consult the large white signboard that is posted at the west end of the commuter parking lot, by the start of the commuter walkway, for information regarding this project.

Week of May 10:

� Following the Monday morning rush hour, crews will be placing temporary fences between the parking lot and station entrance to create a path to be used by commuters during this stage of construction.

� CN contractors will begin mobilizing equipment in preparation for ahead of the construction project.

� With equipment in place, crews will begin the demolition of the existing pavement on the north end of the commuter parking lot that will become a future bus lane at the station.

� Crews also will be creating new "curb cuts", or removal of curbed areas to allow vehicular access for the reconfigured commuter parking lot and for access to the Village of Matteson's water tower. That work will take place on Homan Avenue at the north end of the parking lot, and at the south side of North Street, just west of Homan Avenue.

Week of May 17:

� Utility crews will begin work along the railroad embankment south of the old Kiss & Ride to relocate and install electric utilities.

Contact

CN Complaint Number
Please include your name, address, phone number and be specific in your complaint.

Phone: (888) 888-5909

Email: contact@cn.ca

Village Staff
The Village is also accepting CN Complaint Forms that we will forward to Canadian National. Please fill out the form and submit by mail or bring it to the Village Hall.

CN Railroad Complaint Report

For more information, feel free to contact:

Brooke Henton, Community Development Specialist

Village of Matteson

Phone: (708) 283-4941

Email: bhenton@villageofmatteson.org

Construction Update

Village Construction Hours
Per the municipal code, Paragraph 150.002 (H), Construction hours within the Village are as follows:

Monday � Friday 7:00 AM � 7:00 PM

Saturday        8:00 AM � 7:00 PM

Sunday          9:00 AM � 7:00 PM

Requests for extended construction hours will be submitted at least 72 hours before work is scheduled to begin. We will notify residents via our website www.villageofmatteson.org.

Construction Schedule
Please refer to the previous post titled, �Tentative CN Construction Schedule�.

Train Operations Update

Train Traffic Increase
As you may be aware, train traffic along the EJ&E will increase as apart of the transaction from Canadian National (CN) to purchase the EJ&E. Staff has received some concerns from residents indicating that train volumes have already significantly increased. We emailed the CN and they provided the following response:

�Regarding train count information, there has been a marginal increase in the number of average daily trains operating through Matteson. Last month, in the monthly Operations Reports we prepare and submit to the STB (Surface Transportation Board), for the segment between East Joliet and Matteson (the segment ends at CN's Illinois Central tracks in Matteson), we reported 7.7 daily trains. For this month, we are reporting that number has increased to 8.6. For the segment between the Illinois Central tracks and Chicago Heights, we reported a daily average of 10.0 trains, going to 10.3 this month.�

�For those same segments, per our STB application and per STB's approval, we envisioned a maximum increase to 28.3 average daily trains and 31.6, for the same segments. Those were our traffic projections through the year 2015.�

Current train counts & blockages
As part of the transaction from Canadian National (CN) to purchase the EJ&E, CN is required to submit a Monthly Operational Report to the Surface Transportation Board (STB).

For example: CN shall report frequency, cause, and duration of train blockages of crossings of 10 minutes in duration or greater, listing each delay and including any notifications from persons affected by the blockage and the time of the beginning and end of each delay. CN shall summarize the cause of each type of blockage and shall state how the Applicants intend to reduce the incidence of all blockages not attributed to emergencies or weather-related incidents.

http://www.stbfinancedocket35087.com/ht ... ports.html

The table below shows the proposed changes to rail traffic volumes throughout the Chicagoland area.

Idling
A resident living in Old Matteson expressed great concern over excessive train noise, indicating that a train was stopped on the track for one-half hour making a noise similar to an air compressor/air hose popping sound. She believed that this type of noise did not occur with the EJ & E. CN responded with the following statement.

�What she is describing is actually very typical of normal railroad operations. All trains' braking systems are powered by compressed air. The compressors are part of the locomotives, which are left running to keep the air pressure up, so that when whatever circumstances caused the train to stop are removed, the train can proceed more quickly than it could if it had to recharge the air lines. The "popping" as she describes is normal air line operation, when excess air pressure is bled off rather than allowed to build up. Every railroad in North America does similarly.�

�It is neither our practice nor our preference to keep trains standing still while on the railroad this runs counter to our whole intention for acquiring the EJ&E in the first place. However, while obviously [frustrating] to the residents, there is nothing unusual, illegal or unsafe about trains idling for extended periods of time. It is part of standard railroad practices, but every railroad seeks to minimize it to the greatest extent possible since it wastes fuel while not getting any productivity out of the assets.�

�As to whether it was done prior to CN ownership - it had to be. Since the EJ&E yard in Matteson is an active switch yard and has been for decades, whenever the switch locomotives were idle, the same activity had to take place. In order for the brake lines to remain charged and ready to go, and since the compressors are part of every locomotive, they had to have been left running. It's one of the unavoidable realities of railroad operations, and more important in cold weather, since the locomotives' pipes will freeze and burst if not left running. They are not like your car, where antifreeze protects your car's systems from freezing. Locomotives are air cooled, and in cold weather, are left running to maintain the air and keep them from freezing.�

�While it can happen from time to time, it is absolutely not considered to be "normal" by our Transportation department and is discouraged unless it is unavoidable. My apologies to the resident - please assure her that we work to minimize it as much as possible, but it will happen.�

�The good news is that if the track connections get built, that yard will be removed as part of the project and that issue, as well as another common complaint about cars "banging together in the night" (describing switching activity that can take place day or night) will go away.�

Additional Information - Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
The Surface Transportation Board's Section of Environmental Analysis (SEA) prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the project. The Final EIS addressed required environmental issues and concerns identified during the scoping process and addressed comments on the Draft EIS from the public and agencies. It contains SEA's final recommendation for environmental mitigation measures.

http://www.stb.dot.gov/Decisions/readin ... enDocument