Crossing closure considered in North Carolina; crossing upgrades pegged in Ohio

The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) will hold an informal public meeting March 3 in Salisbury to review proposed plans to close a grade crossing on Henderson Grove Church Road.

The department plans to close the crossing due to low traffic volume and an expected increase in future rail traffic. The closure is part of an effort to reduce the number of redundant and/or unsafe crossings nationwide, NCDOT officials said in a press release. The crossing will remain open until a new proposed access road is built between Henderson Grove Church and Julian roads.

In addition, the North Carolina Board of Transportation last month approved up to $250,000 in Freight Rail & Rail Crossing Safety program funds to support new business opportunities at the Port of Morehead City.

The port requested financial assistance to develop new high-capacity rail transloading capabilities for bulk commodities, according to an item in the NCDOT Rail Division's "Rail Report" for February. The port is served by Norfolk Southern Railway and the Morehead & South Fork Railroad, which provides terminal switching services.

Meanwhile, the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio last week approved funding authorization from the Ohio Rail Development Commission for the installation of mast-mounted flashing lights and roadway gates at two crossings.

NS will install the devices at the Wildacre Road/County Road 72 crossing near Curtice and the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway Co. will perform the work at the Crossroads Road/County Road 108 crossing near Sandyville. To be funded by federal dollars, the upgrades must be completed by Nov. 3.