If the city council goes along with recommendations from the state Department of Transportation (MnDOT), motorists may be seeing some changes in how streets cross railroad tracks in Albert Lea.

Friday, March 01, 2002

If the city council goes along with recommendations from the state Department of Transportation (MnDOT), motorists may be seeing some changes in how streets cross railroad tracks in Albert Lea.

In a presentation to the council Monday, Julie Carr, from MnDOT’s Office of Freight, Railroads and Waterways, recommended that the city consider closing three railroad crossings and upgrading or adding warning devices to six others.

&uot;The emphasis of these recommendations are on safety and the responsible use of tax dollars,&uot; said Carr.

According to Carr, the city has until mid-March to commit to the proposal, in order to line up the necessary funding from federal sources. The estimated costs of implementing all the recommendations is $600,000, of which the city would be responsible for 10 percent, said Carr – except when closing a railroad crossing; that would be fully funded by the federal government.

City officials aren’t ready to commit to the recommendations at this point, said Paul Sparks, city manager. City council members in particular are concerned about the cost to the city.

Sparks is also concerned that they may have missed at least one trouble spot, the crossing on Washington Avenue near the old depot.

&uot;I think they missed one of the worst crossings in town. I’ve seen two accidents there myself,&uot; Sparks said.

The city can agree to accept all or only part of the the recommendations.

The railroad crossings that are recommended for closure are on Winter Avenue, Water Street and South Washington Avenue. Carr is recommending that warning signals and gates be installed at the crossing on West Front Street, flashers be installed at Summer Street, and new signals be installed at Front Street and West Clark Street Additional upgrades to two other crossings are also recommended.

A survey team from MnDOT has already been working in Albert Lea, and has assessed the safety of all the city’s railroad crossings, said Carr. As part of their evaluation, they look at how well motorists can see trains, how well trains can see motorists, the train/vehicle accident history of the crossing, how many trains use the track at that location, and the speed of the trains involved. They also consider whether alternate routes are available.

Albert Lea has 34 public railroad crossings within the city limits, with an average of four crossings for each mile of track in town. This compares with 30 railroad crossings in Rochester, or nearly two and a half crossings per mile of track, in a community more than three times as large as Albert Lea.

The city council will be taking up the issue during workshops and at a council meeting later in March.