The Village has been made aware of community concern regarding the future usage of the Canadian National Soo Line.
The Village has been in communication with Canadian National and the information that was provided is consistent with what they have told the Village in the past. The Canadian National Soo Line is an active railroad and can be used by Canadian National, however, they are not currently choosing to do so. Although the track has seen very light traffic in recent years, Canadian National has told the Village that they continue to inspect the track and the grade crossing warning devices to monitor their readiness for service. The line remains both a regulated main line track under Federal law and a critical portion of Canadian National’s options for operations within the Chicago terminal, given day-to-day traffic fluctuations and operating issues. Canadian National has stated that they have no plans to resume daily train operation through River Forest. However, CN says that it is possible that a train could operate on those tracks on any given day and the track remains a viable option for Canadian National to route trains over should it become necessary.