Alle-Kiski Valley railroad crossings among 'riskiest' in state, feds say

Western Pennsylvania is home to nine of the state’s 20 riskiest rail crossings, according to Federal Railroad Administration data.

Three of the crossings are within about 7 miles of each other in the Alle-Kiski Valley, between Cheswick and Brackenridge.

The Cheswick crossing, at the borough’s Blockdale Street, ranks as the second riskiest in Pennsylvania, according to the railroad administration’s Highway-Rail Grade Crossing Accident Prediction System.

Elsewhere in the A-K Valley, crossings along Brackenridge’s Morgan Street (13th riskiest) and Springdale’s Colfax Street (20th) also ranked among the state’s 20 riskiest, the database shows.

The database analyzes factors including traffic volume, historical crash data and warning devices at the crossings to predict the probability of crashes at 3,601 crossings in Pennsylvania.

Railroad administration spokesman William Wong said the database isn’t designed to rank crossings by the danger they present to people crossing them.

“It is meant to nominate crossings for further on-the-ground review by trained traffic safety engineers to determine whether further physical safety improvements or other enhancements might be needed,” Wong said.

Cheswick’s plight

Cheswick officials have called for safety improvements at the Blockdale crossing multiple times over the years — to no avail, officials say, because the crossing is privately owned.

Norfolk Southern owns the railroad portion of the crossing, and Watercrest Inc. owns property near Blockdale Street, according to Allegheny County and court records. An attorney representing Watercrest didn’t return a request for comment Wednesday.

“We own the track, not the road,” said Norfolk Southern spokeswoman Heather Garcia.

She referred to the administration’s Safety Map, “which shows (Blockdale) as a public crossing, meaning decisions about things like warning devices are up to local highway officials.

“We then partner with agencies to install and maintain the devices they choose,” she said.

Several vehicles have been hit at the crossing over the years, with some of the crashes resulting in deaths and injuries.

Railroad administration data shows there were 10 reported crashes at the Blockdale crossing from 1982 to 2021. Five crashes occurred in the past five years.

“The borough finds the amount of accidents occurring at the railroad crossing shocking and appalling,” Cheswick Council President Brad Yaksich said in a statement provided to TribLive.

In 2006, PennDOT attempted to alter and upgrade the crossing at Blockdale by installing flashing lights and gates. The agency submitted an application to the state’s Public Utility Commission. The crossing has only warning signs.

“This application was subsequently withdrawn due to the department’s determination that the crossing was privately owned,” the statement from Yaksich said.

In August 2020, an Easton, Pa., man attempting to drive across the tracks was killed when he noticed a train coming and tried to back up before being struck, Allegheny County Police said at the time. The man’s estate filed a wrongful death lawsuit in 2022, and that case is winding its way through the county’s court system.

The borough sent a letter to Norfolk Southern officials the day of the fatal crash, Aug. 20, 2020, requesting additional measures be taken to make the crossing safer.

Borough officials said at that time it was the third crash to occur at the Blockdale crossing since May 2019.

“We find this shocking record to be appalling and are certain that more accidents will occur if measures are not (taken) to make the railroad crossings in Cheswick Borough safer. Undoubtedly, Norfolk Southern shares this opinion and is equally committed to the safety of our residents and those that do business within the borough,” the August 2020 letter said.

In that letter, the borough also requested a meeting with Norfolk Southern representatives, but, “to the borough’s knowledge, there has been no action taken since the borough requested a meeting and no action taken after PennDOT applied to increase the safety of the crossing.”

The Blockdale Street intersection is outside the jurisdiction of the state’s Public Utility Commission, said agency spokesman Nils Hagen-Frederiksen.

“Any changes to private crossings would come as the result of private agreements between the railroad and the owners of the private roadways, as would decisions about responsibility for the cost of any upgrades and ongoing maintenance,” he said.

All crossings are ‘potentially dangerous,’ feds say

Wong said it’s not fair to portray one crossing as being inherently more dangerous than others.

“Keep in mind that at least one-half of all crossing collisions occur where properly functioning active warning devices are in place,” he said.

Brackenridge’s Morgan Street crossing had two reported crashes within the past five years, both occurring in 2022.

“It’s definitely on our radar. We’re aware it’s a dangerous crossing,” said Brackenridge Mayor Lindsay Fraser.

She said borough officials would like to see federal officials and Norfolk Southern improve it “in a way that’s responsible and fair to people in the community,” adding that the railroad “has the capital and the capacity to make these upgrades, especially at a crossing like Morgan Street.”

She said Brackenridge officials will continue to push for improvements there.

The Colfax Street crossing in Springdale had two reported crashes in 2021 and a crash in February with no injuries.

Springdale Council President Mike Ziencik said borough officials met with the PUC and railroad after the Februrary crash to discuss the crossing. Signage was added as a result of that meeting, Ziencik said.

Ultimately, people need to be aware of their surroundings when crossing a rail line, Ziencik said.

“You need to be careful,” he said. “You hate to say it, but it is what it is.”

Garcia said Norfolk Southern makes annual improvements to its infrastructure. Since 2013, it has closed more than 775 crossings in an effort to improve safety, she said. The railroad also promotes rail safety with nonprofits and through education and outreach to the public.

“Trains can take a while to stop, often more than a mile,” she said. “That’s why it’s important that, when traversing a crossing with passive warning devices (one without lights or gates), drivers ensure they can clearly see down the tracks in both directions before proceeding and make sure their vehicle will completely clear the tracks.”

Outside of the Alle-Kiski Valley, other Western Pennsylvania crossings to rank among the state’s 20 riskiest included Dravosburg’s Stoneboro crossing (third), McKees Rocks’ River Road (fifth), Robinson’s Lenora Drive (eighth), Monongahela City’s Fourth Street (ninth), New Galilee’s Little Beaver Road (18th) and Homestead’s Amity Street (19th). A crossing in Delaware County ranked as the state’s riskiest.

Westmoreland County’s riskiest crossing, along Derry’s Hickory Avenue, ranked 52nd in the state, according to the FRA. There was a crash there in 2023.