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1/14/2021
The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) today announced $40 million in grants will be awarded to five states seeking to improve safety at grade crossings.The Commuter Authority Rail Safety Improvement Grants Program (CARSI) will help commuter-rail authorities in California, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania and Washington eliminate safety hazards at crossings, according to a USDOT press release.The grants were awarded by the Federal Highway Administration in coordination with the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and Federal Transit Administration.
The following grant amounts were awarded:
• $19,728,000 to New York, for the state's transportation department, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and Metro North Railroad to improve safety at nine crossings along the railroad's Harlem Line in Winchester, Dutchess and Putnam counties by upgrading or replacing existing warning systems and reconstructing crossing structures and approaches now in place;• $14,771,250 to California, for Metrolink to bring crossings up to current standards and add pedestrian gates and right-of-way fencing at Tyler Avenue and at Cogswell Road in El Monte;• $3,335,000 to Pennsylvania, for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority to install new gate systems at three crossings and pavement markings at 20 crossing locations in Bucks, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties;• $1,421,500 to Washington, for Sound Transit to install new crossing gate arms, pedestrian signals, elevated concrete pedestrian pads and detectable warning devices and improve flashing light signals at 7th Street Northwest and 5th Street Northwest in Puyallup; and• $1 million to Massachusetts, for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority to relocate and reconstruct an existing station platform along a single track to eliminate delays on State Route 92 in Wilmington.
"Separation or protection of grades at crossings will not only improve and ensure the safety of rail passengers, pedestrians and motorists, but will also keep rail moving on time," said FRA Administrator Ronald Batory.
Last year, federal legislation appropriated $50 million in CARSI funding to be awarded by the highway administration for grade crossing-related projects, including those that separate or protect grades at crossings; rebuild existing railroad grade crossing structures; relocate highways to eliminate grade crossings; and to eliminate hazards posed by blocked crossings due to idling trains.
To be eligible for a grant, a commuter authority must have experienced at least one accident investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) between Jan. 1, 2008, and Dec. 31, 2018, and for which the NTSB issued an accident report. From 2010 to 2019, the overall number of incidents and fatalities at highway-railway crossings rose 6.3% and 10.1% respectively, while the overall number of injuries declined by 10.5%.
The highway administration expects to issue a notice of funding opportunity to initiate the next round of CARSI grant competition and invite eligible applicants to compete for the remaining CARSI funds in the coming months, USDOT officials said.