Coal trains worth it

I live in Spokane Valley and walk almost daily. A couple of days ago, I was walking north on Sullivan Road to Trent Avenue. I saw a coal train going west, so I stood on the overpass there while the entire train passed under me. I never smelled diesel or coal, and saw no exhaust or coal dust although the train was traveling at a good speed.

I do, however, see many diesel pickups and trucks that put out lots of exhaust. The worst was a garbage pickup truck going through a neighborhood belching black smoke so bad the truck itself was very dirty.

I see no problem at all increasing the number of coal trains going through Spokane. If it creates jobs on the west side of the state, that benefits us to some degree.

Chan D. Bailey

Spokane