Category Archives: Kellar Branch

City of Peoria, Kellar Branch

Carver to City: We’re tired of being “sacrificial lamb” for trail project

20 Comments

The heat of the rhetoric is on “broil” in the on-going Kellar Branch rails-to-trails fiasco. A couple weeks ago, Carver Lumber wrote to the Surface Transportation Board (STB) about Central Illinois Railroad Company’s (CIRY, the city’s hand-picked carrier) latest breach of contract.

Rail cars that were supposed to be delivered to Carver by CIRY within 24 hours took a week to be delivered. CIRY shot back a response to Carver and the STB stating that it wasn’t their fault — it was Union Pacific’s and Carver’s for not notifying them the cars were there. They further stated, “Carver’s unsubstantiated allegations to the contrary are being orchestrated by PIRY [Pioneer Railcorp], which is attempting to misuse the provisions for alternative rail service to negate lawful termination of its contractual and regulatory right to provide service over the rail line.”

Monday, Carver wrote back to the STB (2.8MB PDF) and had this to say about the situation:

Frankly, Carver Lumber is frustrated that we are being ignored, and outraged that CIRY is being allowed to continue to ignore its common carrier obligations and lie to the Board. At this point, it is quite clear that Carver is not being given adequate service, and that the abuse will continue unless the Board takes prompt action.

Subsequent to our Letter, I received a phone call from Union Pacific, that was followed up by a letter, dated October 3, 2006. In that letter (a copy of which is attached), Union Pacific confirmed that it is sending CIRY normal EDI interchanges of our cars, stating plainly that “Union Pacific Railroad does notify the CIRY via electronic data interchange when cars are delivered. This was verified with our own electronic records.”

Apparently unaware that UP would respond, CIRY filed a letter that same day, stating that the service failure was due to “the failure of Union Pacific Railroad Company (UP) to notify CIRY, of placement of the railcars on the interchange track as required by the governing interchange agreement.”

In light of the UP letter, this appears to be an outright lie.

CIRY then has the unmitigated gall to suggest that Carver has an obligation to survey the interchange site and inform them of when cars are delivered, claiming that Carver, having been forced by CIRY to do this, has assumed an obligation as an “established custom and practice”. Carver takes issue with this assertion. Carver is a customer. We have no obligation to send employees out of our facility to observe what cars are interchanged to CIRY by another railroad, and then call CIRY.

You can almost feel the blood pressure going up as you read this, can’t you? It gets better. Later in the letter, Carver says this:

The situation is outrageous. Carver has had enough broken promises, distortions, and outright lies. In the fourteen months since PIRY’ s exemplary service was “replaced” by CIRY, the “service” has been abysmal. In fact, there was no service at all for half that time. Since March, CIRY has broken waybills and rerouted shipments off the Kellar Branch. This latest letter, in which they falsely blame the UP for their failure, and baldly assert that Carver, a customer, should act as their dispatcher, because we have been forced to do so by their patently inadequate “service,” is a direct challenge to this Board. CIRY is making a complete mockery of the regulatory system.

Currently, I am advised that there is a loaded car destined for Carver at the TZPR/CIRY (Kellar Branch) interchange (“TTZX” #561751), and two other cars (“BNSF” #563169 and “BNSF” #561751) being held at the TZPR yard. My shipper routed these cars via the Kellar Branch, because CIRY has seen fit to close the so-called “western connection” (“western fiasco”, would be a better term), for a crossing project. The materials on these three cars are critical to our operations, and has been “in transit” for some three weeks. We need our cars delivered. The Keller Branch is still a rail line in interstate commerce. We are, therefore, respectfully requesting that the Board enter an order, within the next 24 hours, either directing CIRY to comply with its common carrier obligations and deliver our cars via the Kellar Branch, or granting Pioneer Industrial Railway Co. (“PIRY”) an Alternative Service Order so PIRY can deliver our cars. PIRY has assured me they can have the cars to us within thirty-six hours of receiving an A.S.O.

In the absence of an A.S.O. Carver Lumber Company will have no alternative but to have the materials transloaded on an emergency basis. We are almost out of material now, and our business is risking the loss of a significant amount of revenue. We desperately need your immediate assistance to utilize the Kellar Branch. CIRY is never going to provide adequate-service, and we are tired of being a sacrificial lamb for the City of Peoria’s bike trail fantasies.

And the gloves come off. They’re fed up and they’re not going to take it anymore. The city suckered them into playing along, promising comparable service via the western connection, promising to take any legal action necessary to enforce CIRY’s compliance with their contract. And what has happened? The exact opposite. The city is paying CIRY’s legal bills instead and doing nothing — zero, nada — to help Carver Lumber receive adequate service.

I wonder where this falls in the Mayor’s Business Task Force report? Is “customer service” still the city’s “top priority”? Does the city honor its promises and enforce its contracts? Is there any integrity in the Public Works department?

Why does Carver Lumber, a local business since 1946, have to plead their case with a federal agency to get adequate transportation to their business? Why isn’t the City of Peoria admitting their western-connection strategy didn’t work and taking steps to honor their promises to Carver?

It’s time for the City Council to take action and direct city staff to stop jerking Carver Lumber around. The Council, if they really want to be pro-business, should immediately stop pursuing this rails-to-trails project and restore competitive rail service on the Kellar Branch. Actions speak louder than words, or task-force reports.

Kellar Branch

And speaking of CIRY’s runaway train…

10 Comments

Central Illinois Railroad Company (CIRY) employee Thomas Stowers has filed suit against CIRY for injuries sustained in that incident. The suit was filed July 31 of this year in St. Clair County Circuit Court, but I only learned of it last night. The suit claims:

That on or about August 27, 2005, while working in Peoria, Illinois, plaintiff was operating a track mobile which failed injuries [sic] to plaintiff’s head, ribs, left elbow, left rotator cuff, and left shoulder, including the muscles, tendons, ligaments, cartilage, nerves, blood vessels, bones, and joints of these body parts.

Plaintiff states that his injuries and damages resulted in whole or in part from the negligent acts or omissions of the defendant….

This case is interesting because the police report from the night of the incident records that Stowers refused medical treatment. According to incident report PA 05-00026073, Officer Timothy Wong wrote (emphasis mine):

I [Wong] FOLLOWED [Allen] BROWN UNTIL WE CAME TO THE TRAIN CAR AND STOWERS WHO HAD JUMPED OFF OF THE TRAIN DURING IT’S TRAVEL FROM THE AREA OF PARK ST TO THE FOOT OF CAROLINE. STOWERS HAD ABRASIONS TO ALL AREA’S OF HIS BODY, HOWEVER RELATED THAT HE WAS FINE. STOWERS RELATED THAT HE WAS TRYING TO KEEP THE TRAIN UNDER CONTROL AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, HOWEVER HE COULD NOT STOP THE TRAIN CAR AND JUMPED FROM IT, BEFORE IT STRUCK ANOTHER TRAIN CAR. A CODE 2 AMBULANCE WAS CALLED FOR HIM. STOWERS SIGNED A REFUSAL AND DECLINED MEDICAL ATTENTION. NO OTHER INJURIES WERE SUSTAINED BY ANY OTHER PARTY.

Sorry about the all caps — that’s the way it is in the report. In a supplement to this incident, Officer Winfred Fallert added this curious information (again, emphasis mine):

ON 08/30/2005 MYSELF [Fallert] AND SGT SWAIN WENT TO THE LOCATION OF THIS RAILROAD CRASH. WHILE THERE I SPOKE WITH [Steve] DRASSLER WHO IS EMPLOYED AS AN INSPECTOR WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, FEDERAL RAILROAD ADMINISTRATION. DRASSLER INFORMED ME THAT THIS WAS A VERY MINOR INCIDENT THAT DID NOT EVEN REQUIRE THE RAILROAD TO INFORM THEM. THE MANDATORY REPORTING CRITERIA FOR RAILROAD CRASHES ARE DAMAGE IN EXCESS OF $6700.00 OR INJURY TO ANY PERSON REQUIRING MEDICAL TREATMENT. THE ESTIMATED DAMAGE IN THIS CASE IS APPROXIMATELY $5000 AND ALTHOUGH THE ENGINEER DID SUFFER MINOR INJURIES HE DID NOT SEEK MEDICAL ATTENTION. DRASSLER ADDED THAT HE WAS ONLY AT THE SCENE BECAUSE HE RECEIVED AN “ANONYMOUS” PHONE CALL INFORMING HIM OF THIS INCIDENT.

Since there was no injury “requiring medical treatment” and damages were reportedly under $6,700, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) did not conduct a formal investigation of the incident. It almost makes one wonder if Stowers was coerced into refusing medical treatment. I mean, the guy was 46 years old, jumped from a runaway train (reported by one eyewitness to be traveling at approx. 30 mph) in the middle of downtown, had abrasions all over his body, yet refused medical treatment? Something’s fishy there.

Stowers wants to be awarded no less than $50,000 in damages and demands a trial by jury.

Kellar Branch

CIRY in breach of contract … again

11 Comments

Central Illinois Railroad Company (CIRY), the city’s contracted rail operator for the Kellar Branch and western spur, is no stranger to breaking its contract with the City of Peoria. It’s endangered the lives of Peorians with a runaway train and cost Carver Lumber over $60,000 in additional shipping fees, all with impunity. The city, despite its written promises to enforce service standards with CIRY, has stood quietly by and left Carver Lumber hung out to dry.

So now, CIRY is at it again. Why not? There haven’t been any consequences before, right? The following letter from Carver Lumber to the Surface Transportation Board (STB) was filed today. Keep in mind as you read it that the contract CIRY has with the city requires that they deliver railcars to Carver within 24 hours of those cars being placed on the western spur by Union Pacific:

Dear Mr. Williams [STB Secretary]:

We are, by this letter, respectfully requesting that the Board take immediate action to address the service failures of Central Illinois Railroad Company, and grant the Alternative Service Requestor Pioneer Industrial Railway Co. (“P1RY”).

As the Board knows, this matter has been pending for some time. Central Illinois Railroad Company (“CIRY”) is now taking retaliatory action against Carver Lumber Company for its support of PIRY’s Alternative Service Request, and its refusal to submit to becoming a captive shipper.

Specifically, we are informed and believe that Union Pacific Railroad delivered four cars to the CIRY interchange at Pioneer Junction on Monday, September 18 and/or Tuesday, September 19, 2006. Because the Carver employee who generally goes out to Pioneer Junction and checks for deliveries and informs CIRY that cars have been delivered was on vacation last week, we are informed and believe that nobody informed CIRY that cars were interchanged. Apparently, CIRY does not have the normal electronic data systems to inform it of interchanges, or such system is not being used.

In any event, Lee Miller phoned our shipper inquiring about the status of the cars, and was informed they were delivered to CIRY. Mr. Miller also received a highly offensive phone call on Friday, September 22, from “Ken,” a representative of Union Pacific. He told us to reject the cars or they would start charging demurrage. When Mr. Miller asked him if he had notified CtRY that the UP had dropped cars for us, he informed us that the UP has no obligation to contact CIRY when they drop cars. Mr. Miller then contacted CIRY’s engineer, Mike, who informed us that he had no knowledge of any cars for Carver and that CIRY was relying upon Carver to inform CIRY if there were cars at Pioneer Junction. This situation is ridiculous and needs immediate attention and resolution. Mr. Miller explained to Mike that we needed the cars immediately. He said he would have a crew out on Monday (today). Mr. Miller also placed a call to Ray Fuch’s that has not been returned.

As of the writing of this letter. 5:30 p.m. EDT, Monday, September 25, only two of the four cars have been delivered. We do not have a schedule for delivery of the other two cars. We have no idea why CIRY only delivered two cars. To make matters worse, the cars delivered were not the two cars we urgently need.

We also received an e-mail from another of our shippers (copy attached), claiming that “CIRY is a closed line and subject to further charges.” We are uncertain what this means, other than we will likely experience more trouble with our service.

Carver Lumber needed these cars last week. We reasonably believe that CIRY is either retaliating against us for bringing this matter to the Board’s attention or is grossly out of touch with their responsibilities as the common carrier railroad for our rail service, or both. We are also informed and believe that CIRY does not want to serve Pioneer Park, and desires to exit the property.

Carver Lumber Company desperately needs reliable rail service, and it is not getting such from CIRY. Carver respectfully urges the Board to act immediately to grant PIRY’s Alternative Service Request, and to act as expeditiously as possible to correct this situation permanently, by restoring PIRY’s authority over the Kellar Branch.

Sincerely,
Carver Lumber Company Board of Directors
Mark Booth, Debra Wolfe, Lee Miller

It’s bad enough that service over the western spur has been slower and more expensive already. This action (or, more precisely, inaction) only exacerbates the situation. If one were cynical, one would think the city was trying to run Carver Lumber out of town or out of business. That sure would make it easier for the city and park district to get their beloved hiking trail.

Kellar Branch, Peoria Journal Star

Journal Star cranks out fresh batch of Kellar propaganda

24 Comments

I have just a few comments to make about today’s Kellar Branch editorial. I knew when I saw a pro-rail article on Sunday that a negative editorial had to be just around the corner, and the Journal Star did not dissapoint.

Titled “Commuter rail on Kellar line a fantasy,” the Journal Star tells us to “[f]ile this [idea] under the folder marked ‘Pie in the Sky.'” This, from a newspaper that thinks a hiking trail is going to draw tourists and residents to Peoria in droves, as if a hiking trail were some sort of unique geological feature not present in every other city.

They argue that riding the train downtown would take too long. “Peoria’s the 15-minute city, remember? It’s far easier to hop in the car.” “Even if gas was $5 a gallon,” they insist, “it’s hard to believe that North Peoria and Dunlap workers and shoppers in any number would park their cars at a depot” and take the train. Yet just four months ago (May 6), they one of their reporters had this to say: “Hikers and bikers hoping to save gasoline or work off calories on the Kellar Branch trail likely won’t be using it any time soon.” (emphasis mine) So, apparently, the Journal Star trail advocates believes that people will park their cars at a trail access point, walk or bike in the elements to their workplace or to go shopping, all in an effort to save gas. But they won’t go to an enclosed depot, get on a climate-controlled train, and ride it to work or go shopping. Somehow, that plan isn’t “Pie in the Sky.”

The next line is killer: “Beyond that, who’s going to pay for this? Where’s the feasibility study? If private sector folks were convinced they could do this without courting bankruptcy, they’d be lining up, wouldn’t they?” Ironically, Pioneer Railcorp, a private business, has already offered to pay for it. They’ve been lining up to purchase the line, provide freight service, help build the trail, and provide commuter/tourist train service. And they’ve had that offer on the table for two years. The city would get $565,000 for the line, $100,000 in help building the trail, yet the Journal Star implies this private development would be costlier to the taxpayer than ripping out the half-million dollar asset and leasing the whole right-of-way to the Park District for $1/year for 99 years! And speaking of feasibility studies, where is the Park District’s?

“Let’s call this proposal what it is: a misguided attempt to try to derail plans for a Kellar branch hiking/biking trail,” they say. First of all, let’s not mix metaphors. The hiking/biking trail proponents are the ones who want to “de-rail” the Kellar Branch. Secondly, that statement is patently untrue. Those who want to save the Kellar rail line are in favor of a trail side-by-side with the rail line. Pioneer has even offered to donate $100,000 in equipment and labor toward building the trail! Ignorance is bliss at 1 News Plaza. The Journal Star seems to be exhibiting a martyr complex.

This statement is puzzling: “The more shrill opponents erroneously assert that anyone who supports a Kellar hiking trail must then oppose trains, as if rail and trail were arch-enemies. Wrong. Central Illinois’ freight rail infrastructure greatly benefits the region.” This, after they just finished falsely accusing commuter rail proponents of opposing trails! Add projection to the martyr complex. And who are these “shrill opponents” of whom they speak?

“But let’s not kid ourselves. Peoria isn’t […] Napa Valley, Calif., drawing the tens of thousands of customers necessary to sustain a tourism train.” Did you know the Journal Star was an expert on how many customers are necessary to sustain a tourist train? I’m sure they’ve done an exhaustive feasibility study on this. Pioneer Railcorp actually owns and operates a tourist train in Gettysburg, Penn. Who do you think is in a better position to guage the feasibility of this plan — Pioneer or the Journal Star?

I won’t bother typing out the final paragraph as it’s just a summary of their faulty reasoning. Whether or not you believe commuter rail is feasible, at least it would be provided by a private company and the city would derive the proceeds of over a half-million dollars for the line. And if commuter service fails, the city would still have freight rail service and a trail alongside the rail line. So, what is there to lose?

Amtrak, Kellar Branch, Peoria Journal Star

Hell freezes over: Journal Star runs pro-rail article

11 Comments

Two of them, actually. You can read them here and here. Kudos to the editors for publishing some pro-rail information for a change.

Steve Tarter, who I recently learned is a railfan, wrote both articles. The latter one even talks favorably about running a rail and trail side-by-side on the Kellar Branch. This idea had been suggested years ago, but was rejected by the Park District based on a “feasibility study” that was supposedly done showing it would be cost-prohibitive.

Funny thing, when asked to produce said feasibility study, the Park District was never able to provide a copy. Sharon Deckard of the Illinois Prairie Railroad Foundation (IPRRF) asked for a copy at the time and never got one, and I asked for a copy about a year ago and was told the so-called “feasibility study” consisted of “engineering drawings” and a spreadsheet — a spreadsheet that the park district couldn’t currently locate. Huh.

It was suggested at the meeting that the IPRRF do its own feasibility study, and that may happen soon. I joked that all we really need to do is confidently assert that we’ve done one that shows the project is completely feasible. Then if the park district challenges us on it, we offer to show them our feasibility study once they show us theirs. Ha!

Seriously, though, one could get the impression from reading the article that commuter rail is the main reason IPRRF wants to save the Kellar Branch. But truth is, the main reason to keep the Kellar Branch is for hauling freight, not passenger rail. Freight service on the Kellar Branch line will allow rail-served businesses to be courted for Pioneer Park and Growth Cell Two, which would bring more jobs into Peoria.

Passenger rail could very likely be a future additional use of the tracks. But right now, as much as I love passenger rail, I’m going to have to agree with my readers (and disagree with IPRRF) that it’s probably not very realistic to have commuter rail in Peoria at this time, other than intercity transit.

What is feasible now? I’d like to see Amtrak service restored to Peoria. I’d even be happy with a diesel-powered trolley car that would run between Galesburg and Normal via Peoria to take passengers to those Amtrak stations, although I’d prefer a more direct route between Chicago and St. Louis, of course.

City of Peoria, Kellar Branch

Rumor mill: CIRY wants to stop service to Pioneer Park

I got the most interesting e-mail today stating that “CIRY [Central Illinois Railroad Company] wants out of their contract/agreement to provide rail service to Pioneer Park.” CIRY is the carrier that the city hired to replace Pioneer Industrial Railway to provide service on the Kellar Branch and western spur. They’re providing rail service to Carver Lumber at the northwest end of the Kellar Branch, as well as O’Brien Steel at the southeast end.

I can’t independently verify that CIRY wants to stop serving Carver Lumber, but it wouldn’t surprise me. In a filing with the Surface Transportation Board on July 24, they stated, “The 50 rail carloads per year currently shipped to Carver does not provide sufficient revenue to make it economically viable for an operator to operate the Kellar Branch line from the east or west.” (emphasis mine)

Note that they stated they can’t make sufficient revenue to keep providing service from the west either — that is, over the western spur. In other words, the city’s plan to replace reliable and profitable rail service via the Kellar Branch with unreliable, monopolistic service over the western spur has been a failure. This had been predicted and warned against years and years ago, most notably by the city’s own railroad commission (which was recently disbanded), but all warnings were ignored.

Now the city is reportedly threatening to sue CIRY if they try to get out of their contract. After all, if CIRY bows out, the city will likely be unable to convince the STB to allow service to be discontinued on the Kellar Branch; and that means they won’t be able to put a dedicated trail in its place.

Isn’t it ironic that the city wouldn’t sue CIRY for endangering Peorian’s lives after the runaway train incident last year, nor for costing Carver Lumber over $60,000 in additional shipping costs because of their refusal to haul up the Kellar Branch, but they will reportedly sue them for endangering the city’s plans to turn the Kellar Branch into a trail?

Where are the city’s priorities?

City of Peoria, Kellar Branch

What could be done with $565,000?

5 Comments

The Journal Star reports on the City Council’s budget meeting last night, which centered on police protection:

In May, the City Council approved a one-time $100,000 transfer from the capital budget to the Police Department for “saturation patrols.”

On Tuesday, the council got its first glimpse at the payback: 619 traffic citations, 99 vehicle impounds and $17,752 in drug money, 103 grams of narcotics, 434 grams of marijuana and four firearms seized.

Wow, all of that for only $100,000. Of course, they can’t keep robbing the capital budget to fund operations. I wonder where they could get some extra funding? I saw Councilman Chuck Grayeb on WEEK last night saying:

“We bite the bullet and we go to the public and say look, we’re down to the bone right now and we have a deficit and we cannot afford to take away from police and fire and we’re going to have to raise taxes.”

But others don’t think that’s such a great idea. They want to just maintain the status quo, “work smarter,” do more with less, etc.

Meanwhile, Pioneer Railcorp still has an offer to purchase the Kellar Branch rail line from the city for $565,000.

$565,000.

Imagine how many saturation patrols that could finance. Or what equipment it could purchase. Or other ways it could be invested. While the council tries to pinch pennies, they keep overlooking the most obvious, easiest money they could get, and instead want to lease the right-of-way to the park district for $1 per year for 99 years, only to have them tear out the rails and ties. Kind of like they’re throwing away the entire Sears block for a museum project that is only going to develop 1/3 of the land.

Boy, if the city council keeps throwing away assets at this rate, I don’t even want to know how much our garbage taxes are going to be in a few years.

City of Peoria, Commuter Rail, Kellar Branch

Would you take the train to work?

33 Comments

Imagine you live on the north end of town, close to Pioneer Park, maybe in Dunlap. You get up in the morning, wear your corporate uniform, and hop in your car, but instead of driving all the way downtown to your office, you only drive to the rail crossing at Pioneer Parkway. There, you find a parking lot with a small train depot — a “park and ride.” You park your car, head into the depot and have a cup of coffee and pick up a paper at the newsstand.

Then the train arrives. You get on a 45-passenger commuter railcar that looks something like this:

DMU Railcar

The railcar takes you downtown, making stops at a few places (like Junction City) along the way. The car may run right down by the riverfront, or it could run along a track that would be built down the center of Jefferson Street and meet up with the CityLink transit center at Harrison.

As you’re traveling, you enjoy a smooth ride during which time you can read the paper, check your e-mail, conduct business on your cell phone, or just relax. No driving hassles, no fighting traffic. You enjoy the same ease going home after work. Evenings and weekends, you can take the same train to basketball or hockey games, concerts, Civic Center or other downtown events, shopping in the Heights or at the new and improved Junction City, etc.

If the service in this scenario were available to you, would you use it?

That’s what the Illinois Prairie Railroad Foundation would like to know. They’re investigating the feasibility of commuter rail in Peoria, and they’re betting that people would love it. So, I’d like to do a little non-scientific research and see what my readers think of the idea. What say you?

Kellar Branch, Peoria Journal Star

Journal Star does it again

3 Comments

The Journal Star has another Kellar Branch editorial. I can’t help but respond to their erroneous assertions and half-truths:

The start out by saying, “Depending on how the federal government rules, Peoria’s decaying Kellar branch rail line may either become a hiking/biking trail or be forced to reopen for rail service.” Notice there’s no mention (of course) of Pioneer Industrial Railroad’s offer to provide rail service and help build the trail next to the rail line. In the Journal Star’s mind, it’s either/or, one or the other. Too bad they can’t be more open-minded.

Then they proceed to look at the many and various cost estimates for bringing the rail line up to operable condition. After glossing over the three different cost estimates the city submitted ranging from $50,000 to $2 million, they have this little gem:

Meanwhile, Pioneer Railcorp, Kellar’s jilted carrier, apparently thinks it can make the line shine for just under $10,000, which would just about cover a few bushes and some other landscaping in someone’s yard. It’s not credible. Removing the monster weeds alone covering the tracks would take an army, and you know what the military-industrial complex charges these days.

Ah yes, local employer Pioneer Railcorp — the one that wants to buy the line for over $500,000 which would sure come in handy down at City Hall, the one that wants to lure more businesses to Pioneer Park and Growth Cell Two by providing reliable rail service, the one that has offered to rehab the line at their own expense, the one that successfully and profitably ran the line for seven years, the one that provided an itemized and detailed quote for track repair — they’re the ones who are nothing more than a “jilted carrier” and whose repair quote is “not credible.”

But the city, who hired non-local carrier Central Illinois Railroad Co. — the company that couldn’t get a load of lumber up the Kellar Branch, the company that had a runaway train that endangered the lives of Peorians, the company that never successfully or profitably ran the Kellar line, the company that broke their contract with the city, the company that is costing Carver Lumber considerably more in shipping because of said breach of contract, the company that provided a vague, non-itemized, unsigned quote for track repair — their estimate for service is somehow more credible, according to Peoria’s newspaper of record.

It’s so ironic that the city is fighting so hard, spending so much money on lawyers, and for what? So they can waste more money by tearing out a $565,000 asset. Good grief!

As for the “monster weeds” the paper worries would be so expensive to remove — has the Journal Star ever heard of Roundup? I would think one trip down the tracks in a service truck with a sprayer would take care of that problem.

But perhaps the most hopeful comment is the final one: “The city and village should explain their math [to the Surface Transportation Board] in detail, pronto, to dispel the confusion and not risk jeopardizing their credibility or the trail’s prospects.” My friend David Jordan believes this indicates that the Journal Star is starting to worry that the city may not win their case with the STB. I just think it’s funny that they can’t see that the city has already “jeopardized their credibility,” and not just with the STB.

City Council, City of Peoria, Kellar Branch

And for your breach of contract, have another $187,847

3 Comments

What do you do when a company exhibits questionable competence, endangers the citizens of Peoria, and breaches their contract with the city? If you’re the city of Peoria, you award them another contract for more work.

Just to recap: Central Illinois Railroad (CIRY) tried to fulfill their contractual obligations. Late last year they tried to take some lumber up the Kellar Branch to Carver Lumber Company. What many people don’t know is that the Kellar Branch includes a pretty steep hill where it climbs the bluff. CIRY was using a vehicle called a Trackmobile to haul the lumber up the hill. Trackmobiles are designed for moving train cars around in a train yard, not for hauling lumber uphill; they don’t have as much power as an engine. As a result, they lost traction and the train barrelled down the hill backwards at 30 mph through several grade crossings. That runaway train could have killed someone, but thankfully didn’t. After that, they never again attempted to use the Kellar Branch — in breach of their contract with the city.

Not only did the city not enforce that contract (to Carver Lumber’s detriment), but now they want to hire the same company — a company with questionable competence — to do some rail crossing work on Allen Road to the tune of $187,847.

There are several things wrong with this picture:

  1. It does not appear that the City got multiple quotes and this was the low bid. For such an expensive project, one would think they would have bid it out. If they did, they didn’t disclose that information to the council in the Request for Council Action.
  2. The experience the City has had with this company is not exemplary. As noted above, they have been in breach of contract and have endangered the lives of Peoria citizens by their gross negligence. Why should we trust them?
  3. The quote submitted is apparently not itemized. There is hardware as well as labor included in that number of $187,847. How much are they charging for labor? How much for parts? Shouldn’t we at least get an itemized quote? It could be that it is itemized on “Exhibit 2B” which is unfortunately not included in the material available online.
  4. Recently, this same company filed a non-itemized quote with the Surface Transportation Board claiming it would cost over $500,000 to bring the Kellar Branch up to operable working condition, yet Pioneer Industrial Railway submitted an itemized work order indicating it would only cost around $10,000. See my previous post on this issue for more details. Doesn’t this indicate to anyone that CIRY’s cost estimates at least have the potential of being inflated?

One other thing: this work is not being paid by the city, but by IDOT. Does IDOT know anything about the history of this company? Did they have any part in this choice? In fact, why isn’t IDOT doing this work themselves? IDOT’s Bureau of Railroads provided an estimate for track repair on the Kellar Branch back in 2000 (which was used by the city to try to prove repairs are too costly). If they can provide estimates and repair work, and if they’re footing the bill anyway, why is CIRY involved at all?

I certainly hope someone takes this off the consent agenda on Tuesday and asks city staff some hard questions about it.