Shoreline, Washington: Richmond Beach grade separation moves ahead

The project to construct a road-over-rail bridge in the Richmond Beach neighbourhood of Shoreline is moving ahead with the construction of a temporary bridge over the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF) right of way as a step towards eliminating a level crossing installed because a pre-existing bridge could not cope with heavy equipment that needed to cross the railway.

Once the temporary bridge is complete, the old bridge will be torn down and a permanent replacement constructed at the same location. The project has a budget of approximately US$5m shared between the Washington State Department of Transportation (US$4.25m), BNSF (US$0.4m) and the City of Shoreline (US$0.35m).

(July 29th, 2010)

New Orleans, Louisiana: Big name sports star signs on with Operation Lifesaver

Garrett Hartley, the kicker for the New Orleans Saints whose last-minute, 40-yard field goal kick sent his team to the 2010 Super Bowl, emphasises the importance of making safe decisions quickly at level crossings in a new public service announcement filmed in New Orleans.  Rail safety non-profit Operation Lifesaver and Hartley teamed up on the project.

“When you come to a railroad crossing, the decisions you make can mean the difference between life – or death,” says Helen Sramek, President of Operation Lifesaver. “Garrett Hartley is well-known to fans along the Gulf Coast and nationwide, and we are grateful to him for reminding drivers and pedestrians that it only takes an instant for lives to change.“

The 30-second public service announcement, which includes National Football League footage from Hartley’s historic field goal, will air in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Oklahoma (Hartley is an Oklahoma graduate).

(July 28th, 2010)

Left to right: Pat Edwards, LA OL, Garrett Hartley, New Orleans Saints, Carolyn Cook, FRA, Marmie Edwards, OLI

A train collided with a filled propane cylinder that had been deliberately placed on the tracks adjacent to the George Street level crossing in New Glasgow. The incident which was in the end benign because the train knocked the cylinder clear without it exploding occurred in the late afternoon of July 26th, 2010.
Initial police investigations suggest that this incident was not directly linked toe the vandalism which caused a train to derail near Maritime Steel and Foundries Ltd. The derailment occurred because a lock was cut off a switch near the level crossing adjacent to the intersection of Stewart and Victoria streets

(July 28th, 2010)

Wayne City, Illinois: Mail man killed on his daily round

A mail delivery man was killed while on duty when his vehicle was struck by a train at a rural level crossing near the village of Papertown in Jefferson County. The accident occurred shortly before midday on July 27th, 2010.

The Wayne City Postmaster confirmed that the mail man had served the community for fifteen years and that he was on his regular delivery route. The Postmaster further confirmed that Postal Service staff had recovered much of the mail from the scene of the accident.

A Jefferson County Sheriff’s investigation is on-going.

(July 27th, 2010)

A woman who experienced a near-miss with a train has questioned the controls in place at the level crossing on highway 840 in New Hartford. The crossing is protected by standard level crossing signs and conventional traffic signals rather than the flashing level crossing lights and barrier arrangement normally installed at busy level crossings.

Having missed the red traffic signal the motorist found herself exposed to a train approaching the level crossing, the motorist has been advised that as the highway carries in the region of 50,000 road vehicle movements a day and the rail track has just two or three trains a week. With these levels of use the New York State Department of Transportation has determined that conventional traffic signal controls are the most effective way to protect the integrity of the railway and motorists crossing over it.

One advantage of the approach adopted is that the requirement for school buses and vehicles carrying hazardous cargo to stop before crossing the railway as would be the case if standard level crossing controls rather than traffic lights were in place.

(July 27th, 2010)

Authority to start work on grade separation project and make other improvements at level crossings has been given by virtue of an agreement between the US Department of Transportation and the Illinois Department of Transportation concluded on July 22nd, 2010.

The go ahead follows on from a February 2010 announcement of US$100m in TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) discretionary programme as provided for in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding for works within the CREATE (Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency) programme. 

The funding is to be used to construct a grade separated intersection at the site of the present level crossing where 71st Street crosses the Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad Company and CSX Transportation rights of way.

 

Other projects included in this latest tranche of funding for the CREATE programme are:

• Construction of the Union Pacific Third Mainline at Proviso Yard
• Installation of a traffic control system at La Grange/Broadview
• Signalization of Blue Island Yard Running Tracks
• Fourteen roadway/sidewalk/curb projects as part of the Viaduct Improvement Program to enhance safety and security for motorists and pedestrians.

Overall, the CREATE program includes more than 46 rail and 25 highway-rail grade separation projects that involve restructuring, modernizing, and expanding freight and passenger rail and constructing new highway-rail grade separations in the Chicago metropolitan area.

(July 27th, 2010)

Vancouver, Washington: BNSF on the ground to construct bypass tracks

The planning is over and now Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF) has work underway as the first excavations have been made. The work is the first step towards the construction of a 3.2 mile-long bypass to the east of the existing BNSF right of way from downtown Vancouver to the Fruit Valley Road overpass.

Contractors working for BNSF have demolished two old houses and have work in hand to construct a new 39th Street overpass to replace a level crossing over both existing BNSF tracks in West Vancouver and the tracks on the new bypass to the east of the BNSF yard.

In total the entire project has a budget of US150m and is is due to be complete in 2013. Washington’s Department of Transportation is overseeing the project, which already combines state and federal funding. Officials are also optimistic that the project will also qualify for federal economic stimulus funding for high-speed passenger rail network development.

(July 27th, 2010)

 

The grade separation of Foley Boulevard over the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway’s (BNSF) tracks in Coon Rapids will be that bit closer if the application by Anoka County for federal grant funding is approved.

The funding is being sought from the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) budget created through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The grant application is seeking US$12m from the TIGER Program to which the county proposes adding US$3m and BNSF 5% of the cost of the bridge element of the project which will extend Foley Boulevard from Coon Rapids Boulevard to East River Road allowing elimination of the Foley Boulevard level crossing.

The project plans originally for the finalised design to be in place by January 2011. However, this is unlikely to be met as the preliminary design has flagged up a number of highways issues which are unlikely to be resolved until February 2011.

(July 24th, 2010)

The Senate Appropriations Committee has approved US$15.05m for transportation and economic development projects in Illinois.

The Fiscal Year 2011 appropriations bill for the Department of Transportation, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations includes US$0.5m for a Federal Railroad Administration contribution for the Illinois Commerce Commission's Public Education and Enforcement Research (PEERS) programme to level crossing safety through education and enforcement initiatives.

(July 24th, 2010)

Washington, DC: FHWA launches intersection resource website

The U.S. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has launched a website that provides access to a broad cross section of publications, educational materials, and other media that addresses traditional intersections, with or without signals, roundabouts, level crossings and alternative intersection designs such as single-point intersections. Information on the site can be found by keyword search or browsed by title, author, or topic.

The resource is available at: http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/intersection/resources/fhwasa09027/

(July 20th, 2010)

 

Columbus, Ohio: PUCO approves further crossing upgrades

The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) approved construction authorisation from the Ohio Rail Development Commission (ORDC) that directs Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) to install flashing lights and gates at two level crossings in Ashland and Erie counties. The upgrades will be funded with federal dollars.

PUCO also adopted an agreement with ORDC, CSX Transportation and the village of Ansonia authorising CSXT to install flashing lights at a crossing in Darke County. Funding will be shared by PUCO, ORDC and CSXT.

NS and CSXT must submit site plans and cost estimates for the projects to PUCO by Oct 12th, 2010 and complete the upgrades by July 14th, 2011.

In addition, PUCO approved construction authorisation from ORDC that directs NS, CSXT, Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway Company and Indiana & Ohio Railway to install flashing lights and gates at crossings in Auglaize, Champaign, Fayette, Logan, Ross and Wayne counties. The projects will be federally funded.

Each railroad also must submit site plans and cost estimates PUCO by October 12th, 2010 and complete the upgrades by July 14th, 2011.

(July 15th, 2010)

 

Burlington Northern Santa FeRailway’s (BNSF) level-crossing safety team and the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office will recognise two Johnson County women for saving a man’s life when his car became stuck on railroad tracks at a closed crossing.

The women pulled the man from the car as a train approached.

The good Samaritans, Kachalle Young and Amber Kopaczewski of Spring Hill, will be recognised and presented with gifts during a presentation at BNSF’s Technical Training Center at Johnson County Community College.

After the presentation the women will be allowed to operate a locomotive simulator, used to train locomotive engineers, for a rare view of the tracks from an driver’s perspective.

(July 10th, 2010)

 

A 56-year-old Olds man was killed after driving into the path of an oncoming train in Olds on July 6th.

The collision occurred early morning when a northbound freight train collided with a westbound pickup truck near the intersection of Hwy 27 and 50 Street in Olds.

The man was the lone occupant in the vehicle and was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash.

Olds RCMP Cpl. Troy Byrt said there was no indication that the man went around the crossing arm, which was sheared off, but it appeared as if he drove right through it and then was struck by the train.

“Based on our investigation up to this point it appears that the crossing arm and the lights were functioning properly.”

Across Alberta, the number of accidents at crossings from January to May of 2010 was 13, with four fatalities and one serious injury, according to statistics kept by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada. In 2009, there were 14 accidents at train crossings, one fatality and three serious injuries involving trains at crossings.

(July 7th, 2010)

Crews are ripping out the light rail crossing at Ingleside and Mississippi and replacing it. The same will happen at the Bristol and Curlew Drive level crossing after concrete panels settled causing the tracks to move.

A similar problem occurred at the intersection of 2nd Street and following that, Hampton Roads Transit (HRT) reviewed 10 crossings along the 7.4-mile line. Officials found that the Bristol and Ingleside level crossings were not up to standard.

"If somebody told me they built a 7.4-mile light rail anywhere in the world and didn't have to go back and re-do something, I'd say you've got a bad project because nothing is that perfect," said HRT CEO Phil Shucet during an interview on the 2nd Street crossing.

The crossing is the only way in and out of 70 homes and during construction last year, residents manoeuvred along a one-way temporary road for months. For the next few weeks, they'll have to do that again.

It will cost US$1m to repair each crossing.

(July 6th, 2010)

 

 

The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) adopted an agreement with the Ohio Rail Development Commission (ORDC), Cleveland Commercial Railroad (CCR), Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway Co. (W&LE) and city of Bedford to install flashing lights and barriers at three railway crossings in Bedford.

CCR will install the devices at the crossings by June 2011, and close two other crossings when the project is completed. CCR must submit site plans and cost estimates to PUCO by September 28th, 2010.  The project will be funded by federal dollars.

PUCO also approved a construction authorisation from the ORDC directing the Columbus & Ohio River Railroad to install flashing lights and barriers at a crossing in Newark.

In addition, PUCO earlier last month approved two subsidy agreements with W&LE and the city of Medina to upgrade warning devices at five crossings. The W&LE will install active-warning devices at three crossings and the city will install devices at the other two crossings.
(July 1st, 2010)