Mother who lost son in Lac-Mgantic disaster questions plans for railway bypass

Isabelle Boulangerheld back tears as she addressed thepanel ofgovernment experts, lawyers and company representativesin Lac-Mgantic, Que., this week, in towntodiscuss the impact of building a rail bypass around the town.

"The route we're being presented withdoesn't eliminatethe main danger we're facing which is leaving unattended trains in Nantes and Vachon," said Boulanger.

Her 19-year-old son Frdric Boutindied on July 6, 2013.

He hadjust left the Musi-Caf bistro, headed for his apartment nearby,when a runaway train careened down a hill andexploded killing 47 people, many of whom were at the popular hangout.

The train had been left idling, parked for the nightin Nantes, a rail yard 12 kilometres west ofLac-Mgantic, beforeit rolled down the steep incline toward the town of 5,600.

Boulanger's pleaechoedcalls from other local residents and municipal leaders to movethe Nantes and Vachon rail yards to Lac-Mgantic's industrial park, which is on flat ground.

Unless the the federal and provincial governments act on those demands, Boulanger said, building a newrail line to avoid the downtown core doesn'tmake sense.

"I find it inconceivable that we haven't considered moving the triage centres first, before having such an impact onpeople who will have to live beside a railway," said Boulanger.

Her own home is located 350 metres from the proposed new bypass. Her parents' farmland will also be cut in half once the new line is built.

"It's slightly cold-hearted to rub this in our faces to remind us every day of what we've lost," she said.

Ottawa open to relocation

Quebec's environmental review board, known by theFrench acronymBAPE, launched public hearingsinto the $133-million bypass projectin Lac-Mgantic, 250 kilometres east of Montreal,Tuesday.

Federal Transport Minister Marc Garneauchose that day to issue a news releaseannouncing the government has hired anengineering firm, RIVVAL, toevaluate the feasibility of moving the two rail yards.

Thetiming of that announcement left Boulanger and other residents asking why BAPE is proceeding with hearings at all right now.

"Why don't we figure out what to do with the rail yard before working on the bypass?" she asked.

Not an 'easy task'

A Transport Canada representative present at the hearings said the potentially high costof relocation may explain why it hadn'tyet been approved.

"Digging under an industrial park isn't an easy task there can be gas lines and water pipes," said Luc-Alexandre Chayer, a senior manager of environmental assessment with Transport Canada.

Nonetheless, he said the federal government was "very open" to working toward relocating the yards"if the costs are acceptable."

Chayer said the company that now owns the tracks, Central Maine and Quebec Railway, also supportsthe idea.

He saidthe final decision will have to be made jointly by the federal and provincial governments "in late-August or September."

The BAPE is expected to handits final report in to the ministry by Oct.9.

Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway, that operated the corridor in 2013, moved the rail yard from Lac-Mgantic to Nantes around 2006, according to the town's mayor, Sylvain Gilbert.

The Transportation Safety Board's report into the derailment revealed no risk assessment was carried out at that time.

"The company moved the crew-change location to Nantes and began parking trains unattended on the main track on a descending grade," the 2014 report stated.

Isabelle Boulanger said it would make sense to bring things back to the way they were before the 2013 derailment that cost her son his life.

"Then we won't have to deal with thisdanger of having a runaway train."