DM& E project

could mean

300 jobs for area

Plan calls for staging yard near Shag Road in

rural New Ulm

By CHRIS VETTER

Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM -- Railroad expansion and improvements through New Ulm will likely lead to 300 new jobs.

Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad plans to build a "staging yard" one mile east of New Ulm, if the company's rail upgrade plan is approved by federal regulatory agencies.

A staging yard is used to break apart trains that have different items in rail cars, then re-connect the cars to form a new train. For instance, a train might have 80 cars filled with coal, and 20 filled with grain. The 80 coal cars would be separated at the rail yard, and connected with more coal cars. From the sky, a staging yard looks like several train tracks lying adjacent to each other.

"If the project goes forward, that is the site the Surface Transportation Board says it will go," said Rick Daugherty, public affairs officer with DM&E Railroad. Rather than contest the board's recommendation, DM&E is now planning to locate the yard alongside "Shag Road," a gravel road that is southeast of New Ulm.

"New Ulm is set up really well for a rail yard," Daugherty added.

The staging yard also would meet guidelines that limit a conductor to eight hours of driving per day. Train personnel would rotate shifts through the staging yard. The closest staging yard going west is in Huron, S.D.

The staging yard would be about about two miles in length and about 1,000 feet -- or two city blocks -- in width at the maximum point. The railroad is exploring negotiations with landowners in the Shag Road area.

Tom MacAulay, assistant city manager, learned about the Shag Road proposed location two weeks ago, when the environmental impact study was published.

"When it showed up, it was kind of a surprise," MacAulay said. "(The company) knew for quite some time, but they never told us about (the proposed location)."

The company had originally planned to build the staging yard near Mankato, in the area of Minneopa State Park. DM&E released a press statement in July 199 saying the Mankato site had been chosen for the switching yard.

Now, those jobs appear to be heading to New Ulm.

MacAulay said the proximity of the staging yard may not be a win-win situation for everybody concerned.

"The proximity of the switch yard certainly won't hurt the local economy," MacAulay said. "I don't know what it means for people who live in the Shag Road area. I don't know what it does for their quality of life."

Brian Tohal, coordinator for New Ulm Economic Development Corporation, agreed that there are some negatives along with the positives of a new staging yard.

"Will the expansion through New Ulm have some negative impacts for New Ulm? Yes," Tohal said, noting that noise will increase and safety at crossings may be a concern.

However, if DM&E doesn't update the track, the railroad will likely whither, and that results would hurt New Ulm, Tohal contends.

"An operating rail line is critical to our community," Tohal said. "If they don't have the revenue from the coal, they will not have revenue to upgrade its facilities."

DM&E's draft environmental impact statement speaks highly of the staging yard and how it would positively affect the job market.

"Approximately 50-100 permanent jobs would be expected during the start-up of operations at this facility," the report states. "At full operation, approximately 250-300 jobs would be provided."

Businesses and the community would also benefit, the report continues.

"Commercial lodging and eating facilities are expected to be utilized by rail crews and workers, and no company facilities are expected to be provided at this location," the report states. "The potential increase in jobs could also provide additional tax revenues to the communities in surrounding areas and the county."

The proposed staging yard lies outside New Ulm city limits. Brown County commissioners have not yet discussed the plans for the yard or its effects, said county administrator Chuck Enter.

The county is still negotiating with DM&E on 27 rural crossings, and how each crossing would be upgraded, Enter said. The crossings include all township and county roads, Enter added.

The federal regulatory agencies are just now taking public input on the proposed $1.4 billion upgrade to the 600-mile existing rail line, which stretches from Winona to Wall, S.D.

DM&E also is planning to construct a new 274-mile rail line that will continue west from Wall, S.D., and stretch into Wyoming. The new rail would allow coal to be moved from Wyoming to the eastern half of the United States.

Any construction and renovation of existing rail line would not occur until after the federal board approves the final project. Daugherty said that decision could occur as early as next fall.

"The DM&E proposes that the new extension and existing railroad be constructed to carry modern 315,000-pound rail cars, operating in 135-car trains, hauled by either three 6,000-pound horsepower locomotives or four 4,400-horsepower locomotives," the company wrote in a recently published report.

The entire project will take approximately three years to complete. Daugherty could not specify when work would begin or end in Brown County.

"Keep in mind, the goal is to keep the rail line open at all times," Daugherty said.

In Brown County, the railroad identified three bridges it plans to tear down and replace. A 731-foot bridge that crosses the Cottonwood River near New Ulm would be razed, along with a 291-foot bridge near Evan that crosses Sleepy Eye Creek and a 161-foot bridge near Sanborn that crosses Coal Mine Creek, according to the environmental statement.

The upgrades are needed because of aging track and the need for more speed across the lines, the report states.

"Over 60 percent of the existing timber ties are in poor condition and would be replaced," the report states. "Where practical, grades and curvature would be flattened."

The new track would permit speeds up to 49 miles per hour, the report states.

"Existing track allowable speeds range from five to 40 mph, with average speed currently less than 20 mph.

There are currently 10 trains a day through Brown County, the report states. The rail improvements should reduce the wait at crossings, even though the trains will now be 135 cars long, or about 1.4 miles.

The report shows statistics that a 135-car train moves more quickly through a town at 40 mph than a 115-car train moving at 25 mph.

"Rail safety should also be improved, resulting in safer more reliable transportation," the report states.

If train traffic increases to 21 trains a day in Brown County, it would result in a small increase in accidents, the report calculates.

"A total of 13 accidents occurred at grade crossings between 1993 and 1997," the report states. "This represents a predicted increase of one accident every two years."

In promoting the proposed expansion, DM&E has emphasized its benefits of economic development and better grain prices.

For more information on the project, Web users can go to www.dmerail.com