The issue of coal dust coming from trains rumbling through the Kamloops area seems to be coming to a head.
CN Rail plans to increase shipments and to accommodate that, CP Rail will be building a new track along its mainline through the city that it shares with CN.
Those plans have some local leaders, including councillor Dale Bass, frustrated. Bass lives in Dallas and says her neighbours have sent her videos of plumes of coal dust coming off the top of train cars.
In fact, she says a neighbour of hers had to keep replacing the pump in their pool because it was repeatedly seizing up from coal debris.
“I actually sat one day and counted the number of cars that were going through because it seemed like there was three miles of cars. So they’re already running longer trains,” Bass said, on the NL Noon Report.
“And I find that puts a bit of a lie to the explanation that we do get from them which is ‘well the railroad was here first’. The railroad was there when they weren’t running 150 cars through the city.”
CP Rail has so far been less than transparent with media about their plans.
“As a reporter I covered the coal dust issue fifteen years ago and I’ll tell you now the dust that’s coming off of some of the trains that are going through Dallas now is worse than it was back then,” Bass said, noting she expects community backlash when the Jack Gregson trail permanently closes in November to accommodate the track expansion.
She says complaints are forwarded on to the city who in turn forward it to the rail company. But at the end of the day, rail lines are federally regulated so not much changes.
“They forget that sometimes they need to talk to the people who they will be affecting. We saw that with a rezone out here in Dallas recently. Where the company didn’t talk to the neighbours, neighbours got upset, convinced city council that it wasn’t a good idea for the area, and it was voted down,” Bass said, referencing a proposed truck travel centre for Kokanee Way that was voted down.
“I wish people who want to do business with Kamloops would remember they’re doing business with the citizens of Kamloops too.”
Meanwhile, City of Kamloops parks manager Jeff Putnam says there is nothing the city can do about the Jack Gregson trail closing, because it is on a private right-of-way belonging to CP Rail.
(Photo submitted)
