From the 5/18/06 Fremont News-Messenger:

 

 

Ottawa County sheriff cracking down on railroad companies

By KRISTINA SMITH

Staff writer

 

PORT CLINTON -- If train company officials refuse to stop blocking crossings for hours at a time, authorities plan to arrest the train's crew, the sheriff said.

 

But Ottawa County Sheriff Bob Bratton hopes criminal charges will be a last resort.

 

...

 

http://www.thenews-messenger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060518/NEWS01/605180307/1002/rss01

 

I wonder what was there first, the road or the railroad?

If they want a permanent solution, they should approach ODOT about doing a grade separation to eliminate the crossing altogether and replace it with a highway overpass.  Most of Ottawa County is rural, so it wouldn't be a huge engineering feat.  If the road is that heavily traveled, they should look into this as an option.

 

But arresting the train crews will get about the same result as issuing tickets and levying fines against the crew and the railroads.  The courts have pretty much uniformly dismissed these cases because federal interstate commerce laws trump any local ordinances.

From the 7/19/06 Port Clinton News Herald:

 

 

Trains to get moving

Railroad officials look into blocked tracks

By KRISTINA SMITH

Staff writer

 

PORT CLINTON -- Norfolk Southern Railroad officials plan to find out why company trains often block western Ottawa County crossings and determine how to move them faster, officials said.

 

Railroad Division Superintendent Jeffrey Fliger and an attorney met with a committee of county officials last week in Toledo to discuss law enforcement officers' and area residents' complaints that emergency vehicles cannot pass.

 

...

 

http://www.portclintonnewsherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060719/NEWS01/607190303/1002/rss01

 

From the 8/29/06 Toledo Blade:

 

 

Ottawa County targets blocked rail crossings

 

PORT CLINTON - A committee of Ottawa County safety officials and representatives of Norfolk Southern railroad have begun working on ways to keep certain rail crossings unblocked for emergency vehicles, including improved communications between the railroad and the sheriff's office.

 

Sheriff Robert Bratton said he's optimistic a solution will be found to work with railroad officials to clear crossings blocked by trains.

 

...

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060829/NEWS17/608290399/-1/NEWS

 

From the 9/27/06 Port Clinton News Herald:

 

 

Sheriff: No blocked crossings in August

News Herald reports

 

On Saturday, Sept 9, the administration of the Ottawa County Sheriff's Office reviewed reports for blocked railroad crossings during the month of August. No reports from citizens or law enforcement were received regarding blocked crossings.

 

It is felt that this is a reflection of the meeting that was held by the committee for Ottawa County and the Norfolk-Southern Railroad personnel, said Ottawa County Sheriff Bob Bratton.

 

...

 

http://www.portclintonnewsherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060927/NEWS01/609270311/1002/rss01

 

Link contains a photo.  From the 4/11/07 Blade:

 

 

Ottawa County, rail officials meeting about blocked crossings

 

Ottawa County officials expect to meet today with Norfolk Southern railroad representatives concerning trains blocking railroad crossings, including routes regularly used by emergency vehicles.

 

Sheriff Bob Bratton said yesterday that while he understands the railroad's occasional need to stop its trains and that many trains are too long to fit between road crossings, Norfolk Southern lately has been violating a handshake agreement struck last fall to avoid blocking certain "high priority" roads.

 

...

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070411/NEWS11/704110401/-1/NEWS

 

What a dumb idea for a solution (that's illegal anyway).  It's not the crews' fault.  They just do what the dispatchers tell them to do or they stop because they outlaw. 

 

Invest in the infrastructure, damnit!