The Columbia City Council has reached an agreement with the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) to remove the railroad crossing over Business Loop 70 East. This decision was made at Monday night’s meeting and involves both parties sharing responsibilities for the process. According to a council memo, MoDOT will be in charge of repairing and maintaining the roadway, while the city’s railroad staff will take care of removing the rails, crossing surface, support structures, and hardware.
The city has been responsible for maintaining the railroad near its power plant since it stopped using coal as fuel. Over time, poor road conditions have resulted from the deterioration of the crossing. The city manager and staff created a memo to highlight these issues.
MoDOT plans to resurface Business Loop 70 this year, and temporarily removing the railroad crossing seems reasonable given this situation. The agreement with MoDOT also allows for future replacement of the crossing if needed without any additional costs to the city.
The removal of the railroad would not result in additional expenses for the city as per the proposed agreement. Although they do not anticipate using it in the near future, they will retain railroad signs, lights, and markers in case they are needed later on. Continuing to maintain it would have been more expensive in terms of costs incurred by them over time.
In a related incident reported by ABC 17 News earlier this month, a driver whose truck was damaged near the railroad crossing estimated damages exceeding $2000.
Overall, this agreement marks a step forward towards improving road safety on Business Loop 70 East by removing an obstacle that has caused problems for drivers over time.
