Residents have long worried about plans for Southwest light rail to operate alongside freight trains hauling ethanol, especially in densely populated areas like Minneapolis.
That distress recently surfaced anew at the Legislature with a measure that would severely limit railroads' liability if a catastrophic accident involving hazardous materials like ethanol or crude oil occurred between LRT and freight haulers.
Foes of the bill claim it offers little safeguard to protect residents, homes, businesses and environment should a rail disaster occur. "This is a special-interest bill promoted by the railroad industry to absolve them of liability in case there's an accident," said Rep. Frank Hornstein, DFL-Minneapolis, a longtime advocate of rail safety.
Those who support the bill say it offers reasonable protection to the public and to freight carriers alike.
Discussion at the Capitol about the proposal has focused almost exclusively on Glencoe-based Twin Cities & Western Railroad Co. (TC&W), which serves farmers in southwestern Minnesota who depend on the line to ship their products to markets worldwide. But bigger railroads also would be covered.
On average, privately held TC&W says it runs four to five trains through Minneapolis a day hauling commodities, such as corn, soybeans, grain, and sugar beets. About two trains carrying ethanol rumble through the metro every week, according to Mark Wegner, TC&W president. Some trains can stretch a mile long.
Scheduled to open in 2021, Southwest light rail will run adjacent to TC&W's trains along the Kenilworth corridor near the busy Chain of Lakes area. About 210 light-rail trains will run daily on the route connecting Minneapolis to Eden Prairie, according to the Metropolitan Council.
The space between freight and Southwest LRT trains will vary from 25 feet to 50 feet along 7.65 miles of shared route between Minneapolis and Hopkins. About 10 feet will separate the two when LRT trains snake through a tunnel in the Kenilworth corridor.