OMAHA, Neb. (NEWSnet/AP) — In response to the rail industry relying on longer trains in recent years, the Biden administration has designated $570 million in grants to redo many railroad crossings in 32 states.

The grants announced Monday by U.S. Department of Transportation will contribute to building bridges or underpasses at dozens of crossings.

In recent years, the major freight railroads have overhauled their operations to rely on fewer, longer trains so they can use fewer crews and locomotives as part of efforts to cut costs. The railroads insist those changes haven't made their trains riskier, but regulators and Congress are critical of that stance after several recent high-profile derailments.

In some places, trains routinely stretching more than 2 miles long can block crossings for hours, cutting off access to schools, work and emergency response. There have been documented reports of pedestrians climbing between stopped train cars, a dangerous situation as the trains could start moving without warning.

In addition, roughly 2,000 vehicle collisions are reported at railroad crossings every year. Nearly 250 such deaths were recorded in 2022.

The grants are part of the $1 trillion of infrastructure funding that will be distributed during the next five years. In each of these grants, states and cities — sometimes with the help of the railroads — must cover at least 20% of the project cost.

Some of the 63 projects that will receive grants involve planning and design work for the future, but most of the money will go toward actually eliminating problems. The examples include Houston, where four underpasses will replace four rail crossings; and Fostoria, Ohio, where a new bridge will provide safe access to an area of town bordered on three sides by railroad tracks.


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