Citing environmental and safety violations by a train operator in two predominantly Latino neighborhoods in Los Angeles, City Councilman Kevin de León Thursday announced his intent to seek legal remedies against the company.
During a news conference Thursday, the councilman, who represents the 14th District encompassing downtown L.A. and northeast neighborhoods, said Union Pacific “exploited our communities, treating the people of El Sereno and Lincoln Heights like disposable resources.” He says the company’s trains remain idle for hours, blocking traffic and releasing toxic fumes.
According to a copy of the motion, which the councilman will file Friday, Union Pacific has long violated state regulations with “illegal stoppages,” or trains idling for hours on end along train tracks, often blocking intersections, and adding to the area’s air pollution.
“Despite decades of complaints, the community’s voices have gone ignored. Union Pacific Railroad has built its empire by turning a blind eye to communities it pollutes,” de León said. “For years, there have been spewing poison into the air, poison that our children breathe into the lungs every single day, the lungs of our families who live here.”
Union Pacific in a statement to NBCLA said it welcomes an “open dialogue” with city leaders to discuss any concerns with its operations.
“Union Pacific has a history of working collaboratively with the city of Los Angeles and agencies who work directly with railroads,” the company said in a statement. “We have not received any communications from the council member’s office related to the concerns referenced. His office has reached out previously on unrelated inquiries, and we responded accordingly.”
De León shared about nine months of video evidence capturing idle trains. Cameras recorded more than 36,000 minutes of idle trains, representing about 25 days of illegal train blockages that halted traffic and emergency vehicles.
The councilman’s motion, if approved, would instruct the city attorney to consider legal action to get Union Pacific to address their operations and mitigate impacts to these two neighborhoods.