Washington District of Columbia USA - Supporters and opponents of a merger between the Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern freight railroads laid out vastly diverging scenarios if the union is approved at a federal hearing Wednesday.
 
U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi warned of excessive delays on Metra's Milwaukee District West Line, owned by CP, that could undo ridership gains from COVID-19 lows.
 
"If the current merger proceeds as proposed, Metra ridership and its finances will be devastated," the Schaumburg Democrat told members of the U.S. Surface Transportation Board (STB).
 
The merger would create a massive rail system stretching from Canada to Mexico if allowed.
 
Although CP expects its acquisition of KCS would increase freight traffic from three daily trains on its tracks to 11 on average, it could be closer to 18, Krishnamoorthi cautioned.
 
"This merger as proposed would cause potentially hundreds of thousands of commuters to drive rather than take public transit, clog roads harming the environment, and set back public transit for decades," Krishnamoorthi testified at the hearing in Washington, D.C.
 
Not so, countered CP President Keith Creel.
 
"There will be no adverse impact on commuter service," Creel said, adding that Amtrak supports the plan.
 
"This combination will create an unparalleled single network connecting three nations and inject competition into the railroad industry where every customer will have more options. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," Creel said.
 
Eight suburbs and DuPage County have formed the Coalition to Stop CPKC to fight the acquisition and contend it will delay first responders, snarl traffic, and increase risks of crashes and hazardous materials spills.
 
Creel noted the railroad has reached out to communities and has mitigation agreements with towns like Pingree Grove and Hampshire.
 
He said some communities are "asking for the moon in hopes the board will give them more."
 
Wednesday marked the start of a three-day hearing by the board whose chairman is Martin Oberman, an attorney and former Metra board chairman.
 
Oberman pressed CP officials on how many freight trains would run on the tracks ultimately, 12 or 18?
 
"If you live in this area, you want to know what will happen in the long-term," he said.
 
Oberman added the board may consider putting train quantities as a condition in a potential approval.
 
STB analysts issued a draft environmental impact statement in August that concluded the combined railroads would have a "negligible" effect overall.
 
This winter, STB staff will finalize the EIS and the board will ultimately vote on it.
 
Marni Pyke.