CHICAGO, IL, Sept. 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CN (TSX: CNR) announced today a voluntary mitigation agreement (VMA) with the Village of Hawthorn Woods, Ill., located approximately 40 miles northwest of downtown Chicago, that addresses the municipality's environmental issues with CN's acquisition of the principal lines of the former Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway Company (EJ E). CN completed the acquisition on Jan. 31, 2009, and is running trains over the line.
CN will provide funding for a number of initiatives, including the maintenance of an existing quiet zone, noise mitigation, emergency response training, pedestrian crossing protection and traffic signals.
CN now has VMAs with 18 municipalities, more than half of the 33 villages and municipalities along the EJ E in Illinois and Indiana.
Jim Vena, CN senior vice-president, Southern Region, said: "CN is pleased to have reached this agreement with Hawthorn Woods, which reflects CN's ongoing commitment to mitigate the impact of its EJ E acquisition on communities along the line. We will continue to work closely with all communities as we move forward with the integration of the EJ E into CN's rail network and complete planned infrastructure improvements."
Hawthorn Woods Mayor Joseph Mancino said: "The Hawthorn Woods Village Board carefully weighed the merits of the agreement negotiated by our representatives and CN and concluded it is in the best interests of the municipality to work on mitigation efforts immediately. The agreement will address the community impact of CN's acquisition of the EJ E, thus safeguarding the quality of life in the village. In the months and years ahead, we will maintain a close dialogue with CN as it proceeds to integrate the railroad into its operations."
CN expects that full integration of the CN and EJ E networks will be accomplished within three years, and it will communicate changes in a timely manner to the communities affected by the acquisition.
More information (http://www.cn.ca/en/company-proposed-aquisition-eje-rail-lines.htm) on the acquisition, including a map of the areas served by the EJ E and CN, is available on CN's website, http://www.cn.ca/.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements. CN cautions that, by their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk, uncertainties and assumptions. Implicit in these statements, particularly in respect of long-term growth opportunities, is the Company's assumption that such growth opportunities are less affected by the current situation in the North American and global economies. The Company cautions that its assumptions may not materialize and that the current economic conditions render such assumptions, although reasonable at the time they were made, subject to greater uncertainty. The Company cautions that its results could differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause such differences include, but are not limited to, the effects of adverse general economic and business conditions, including the current deep recession in the North American economy and the global economic contraction in 2009, industry competition, inflation, currency and interest rate fluctuations, changes in fuel prices, legislative and/or regulatory developments, compliance with environmental laws and regulations, actions by regulators, various events which could disrupt operations, including natural events such as severe weather, droughts, floods and earthquakes, labor negotiations and disruptions, environmental claims, uncertainties of investigations, proceedings or other types of claims and litigation, risks and liabilities arising from derailments, and other risks detailed from time to time in reports filed by CN with securities regulators in Canada and the United States. Reference should be made to "Management's Discussion and Analysis" in CN's annual and interim reports, Annual Information Form and Form 40-F filed with Canadian and U.S. securities regulators, available on CN's website, for a summary of major risks.
CN assumes no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect future events, changes in circumstances, or changes in beliefs, unless required by applicable laws. In the event CN does update any forward-looking statement, no inference should be made that CN will make additional updates with respect to that statement, related matters, or any other forward-looking statement.
CN - Canadian National Railway Company and its operating railway subsidiaries - spans Canada and mid-America, from the Atlantic and Pacific oceans to the Gulf of Mexico, serving the ports of Vancouver, Prince Rupert, B.C., Montreal, Halifax, New Orleans, and Mobile, Ala., and the key metropolitan areas of Toronto, Buffalo, Chicago, Detroit, Duluth, Minn./Superior, Wis., Green Bay, Wis., Minneapolis/St. Paul, Memphis, and Jackson, Miss., with connections to all points in North America. For more information on CN, visit the company's website at http://www.cn.ca/.
CN
CONTACT: Media: Patrick Waldron, Manager, Public Affairs, (708)
332-4377; Investors: Robert Noorigian, Vice-President, Investor Relations,
(514) 399-0052
