The crossings and their intended upgrades are: 612-626 Richard St., flashing lights and roadway gates; 510-515 Kercher St., flashing lights and roadway gates; 500 E. Pearl St., circuitry upgrade and modernization; 410-413 E. Maple St., circuitry upgrade and modernization; 345 E. Central Ave. (at Ohio 741), circuitry upgrade and modernization; 332 Linden Ave., circuitry upgrade and modernization; 338-348 Lock St., flashing lights and roadway gates; and 281-299 Mound Ave., circuitry upgrade and modernization.
The Norfolk Southern Railway will complete the upgrades by April 23, 2014, according to the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio. PUCO is responsible for evaluating Ohio’s public grade crossings to determine the need for installing active warning devices.
Bob Stanley, Miamisburg engineer, said the railroad and the ORDC had approached the city about making these improvements.
“They said we had too many crossings, all within approximately one mile,” Stanley said. “We closed two (at Buckeye Street and Park Avenue), and then they agreed to upgrade the eight remaining crossings.”
Stanley said Miamisburg already has done some work in relation to these upgrades, including the city’s Central Avenue road improvements and regular maintenance and modifications to the roadways.
PUCO reportedly will assist Miamisburg city officials with related costs of these upgrades, such as rumble strips, illumination, improved signage or other safety enhancement at each project location. Those improvements are expected to cost less than $5,000.
In the past decade, PUCO reported the annual number of train-motor vehicle crashes in Ohio has decreased significantly, from 123 in 2001 to 64 in 2011.
Stanley said the city has not had an outstanding amount of safety concerns regarding these crossings, but said he welcomes the opportunity to make these roads safer.
For more information about railroad crossings throughout the state, call the Ohio Rail Hotline at (866) 814-RAIL (7245).
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