PALMETTO, Ga. — Trains are blocking an intersection in Palmetto for longer than ever before, according to some drivers.
They reached out to Channel 2’s Courtney Francisco for help finding out the reason for the change.
The railroad crossing in question is at Roosevelt Highway and Tatum Road.
“Sometimes, it doesn’t even move,” said Jonne Popovichenko, who works in the area.
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Lee Lightbrown drives a semi-truck there. He said he’s been stuck, waiting for a train to pass there for at least 40 minutes before.
“It is what it is, I guess,” said Lightbrown.
They both said it’s hard to predict when it will happen.
“It comes randomly,” said Popovichenko.
They are not alone in their concern. Georgia Department of Transportation data shows that so far this year, people have reported blockages at rail crossings 169 times.
Of those, 40 callers said first responders were stuck. Another 34 of them said people were walking under, over or between stationary train cars.
“You would have to do a U-turn and go to opposite way and try to find the end of this train,” said another man in traffic, Kerry Armstrong.
He said some trains are so long, there is no way around.
“They have a lot of carts all the time,” said Armstrong.
When asked what was causing the increase in wait times at this intersection, CSX wrote, “…there are times when mechanical and operational issues could result in blocked crossings, as well as when trains stop for mandatory safety inspections, federally-regulated crew changes or to allow another train to safely pass.”
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CSX said it’s up to each emergency response agency to determine how to handle a situation in which an emergency response vehicle, such as an ambulance, is stuck as a train passes.
More than work, getting home or picking up children at school, drivers in Palmetto said they’re worried about emergencies.
“There would be, literally, no way out,” said Popovichenko.
The number of blockages reported in the state has decreased this year. In this same time period last year, the U.S. DOT reported 281 calls to report train blockages.
To check Federal Railroad Administration data in your neighborhood, click here.
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