Vandals cut through an unpopular fencing barricade at a railroad crossing atop the Wyoming Valley Levee in Edwardsville earlier this year. The Luzerne County Flood Protection Authority has repaired the fencing and is seeking state approval to remove the fencing in exchange for a warning light that also sounds an alert when trains are nearing.
File photo
Luzerne County’s Flood Protection Authority formally submitted an application with the state to make the Edwardsville levee railroad crossing public and eliminate unpopular fencing that interrupts the recreational path atop the flood-control system.
Authority Executive Director Christopher Belleman sent county and authority officials an email Thursday informing them of the application with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, or PUC. The authority oversees the Wyoming Valley Levee System along the Susquehanna River.
A public crossing designation would allow the PUC to assist the authority and railroad in identifying a solution that meets current safety requirements. The Edwardsville crossing meets the parameters of a public crossing because it passes through a publicly-owned levee used by pedestrians and bicyclists, the authority has said.
Norfolk Southern, which owns the land containing the track, required the fencing as part of an agreement granting permission for the authority to modify the crossing so a gate system could be quickly set up when the Susquehanna rises, eliminating the need for nearly 1,600 sandbags, the authority said
The authority’s application, which is 71 pages with attachments, says the fencing is not working out.
“The pedestrian barrier has proven to be ineffectual in that vandals routinely cut and damage the fencing to gain access across the tracks,” it said.
The authority’s proposed solution: elimination of the fencing and installation of a “pedestrian low-rise audible/visual warning device with signage.”
This device would light up and sound a warning when a train is approaching, Belleman said Thursday.
The authority believes the warning device and signs are sufficient for both public and rail safety and that a crossing arm is not necessary, he said.
The estimated cost to remove the existing fencing and install the warning device and signs is $250,000, the application said. Funding for the project would be programmed through a federal or state recreation grant supplemented by authority funds, it said.
PUC spokesperson Nils Hagen-Frederiksen said the state agency’s rail safety engineering staff will review the authority’s application and supporting materials and subsequent responses from Norfolk Southern and any others impacted by the proposed project.
“The nature of the project, the completeness of the application and the degree of support or opposition all have an impact on next steps,” Hagen-Frederiksen said.
Belleman expects a site meeting will be scheduled as part of the process.
“It’s going to take time. We won’t get an end result tomorrow,” Belleman said. “We’re hoping to get a positive resolution out of this.”
Walking, running and bicycling are permitted atop the levee because the flood control system is in an urban environment, the application notes.
“From 1940 to 2022, for over 80 years, the public has enjoyed recreational access atop the ‘levee trail’ as it is locally referred to,” it said, noting that includes the section with a railroad crossing near the Wilkes University women’s softball field, adjacent to Kirby Park.
Pedestrian counts were required as part of the submission. It said there were an estimated 8,000 visits to the Kirby Park levee trail from March 1, 2023 through Feb. 29 this year.
Vandals cut through the fencing barricade earlier this year, allowing the public to pass through the openings and continue traveling on the recreational path. Levee users also have been observed navigating steep embankments adjacent to the fenced-in zone so they could reach the other side of the path, which means they still cross the train tracks in a different spot.
Belleman said the fence vandalism has been repaired.
The authority’s application also seeks to make two other crossings public where the levee path runs below a railroad bridge in Kingston near the Kingston Public Works facility and in Wilkes-Barre near the end of Riverside Drive.
There are no rail warnings at these sections, but Belleman said the authority wants to ensure all crossings included in the application to be comprehensive.
Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.
