Tips on How to Write to the FRA to Oppose the High Speed Railroad Route

We received a helpful piece from SECoast.org offering detailed advice to our readers on how to write a letter to the Federal Rail Authority (FRA) to voice opposition to the proposed high speed rail Kenyon to Old Saybrook bypass and request an extension of the FRA’s Comment period on the proposal from 30 to 60 days.

The Town of Old Lyme has also sent out an email asking residents to write to the FRA for the same reasons.

We’re glad to support all the efforts to get the word out to the maximum number of people and so we’re republishing the main points of SECoast’s email below:

It’s the holiday season, but there is a Jan. 31 deadline fast approaching to oppose the Kenyon to Old Saybrook bypass, and you want to know what you can do?

First, even if you submitted public comment earlier in the process, you should write again. You don’t have to live near the bypass, comment is available to all adults, so please share this post with your friends everywhere.

Now, just follow these simple steps:

1. Send an email to the Federal Railroad Administration. Here is the address: [email protected]

2. In the Subject line include something like this: “Extend the Deadline & Drop the Kenyon to Old Saybrook Bypass” (you can cut and paste, but it never hurts to personalize these things)

3. Yes, a brilliant argument helps, but so does the sheer volume of comments. If you want a brilliant comment, that will come in January, but for now, don’t worry, keep it simple. Just cut and paste in this message:

Dear Sir or Madam:

I am writing to oppose the inclusion of the Kenyon to Old Saybrook Bypass in NEC Future planning. I am also writing to object to the limited notice, and opportunity to comment on the plan. I first learned about plans for a Kenyon to Old Saybrook Bypass on ADD DATE OF WHEN YOU LEARNED OF BYPASS HERE.

It is clear, that the Federal Railroad Administration has failed to demonstrate to the public a compelling need for a Kenyon to Old Saybrook Bypass. There is also mounting evidence that the Federal Railroad Administration failed to comply with either the spirit or the letter of the law, by selecting the Kenyon to Old Saybrook Bypass as part of the Final Environmental Impact Statement (F-EIS) prior to public comment, on or before, November 15, 2015.

To be clear, the Kenyon to Old Saybrook Bypass poses intolerable and unsustainable impacts to the dense historic and environmental resources which define both Southeastern Connecticut and Southwestern Rhode Island.

Given the importance of the Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (P-EIS) for the future of the Northeast Corridor, a 60-day extension of the deadline for public comment from January 31, 2017 to April 1, 2017, is not only in the public interest, but has clear precedent. Indeed, a similar extension was granted to review much less extensive plans for the “All Aboard Florida” high speed rail planning initiative in Florida. The Federal Railroad Administration has enjoyed flexible deadlines throughout the planning process, surely, the public deserves an equivalent opportunity to provide informed and meaningful comment before this critical document is finalized.

Sincerely,

4. Now that you have cut-and-pasted, feel free to personalize it, just make sure you have added the date as instructed above. That date is important for the public record. Now sign and send. You can also mail your comment by post to:

NEC FUTURE
U.S. DOT Federal Railroad Administration
One Bowling Green, Suite 429
New York, NY 10004

Editor’s Note: Please share this post on all your social media accounts to spread the information far and wide. Thank you!