(The following story by Matt Akins appeared on the Watertown Daily News website on July 23, 2009.)
NORWOOD, N.Y. — Village officials say local law enforcement is prepared to ticket the engineers of CSX trains if they continue to stop the trains in the middle of the village for an extended period of time.
For several years, problems have occurred when a train is attempting to make a sharp curve in the middle of the village and sometimes stalls out and remains stationary for a period of time. It essentially cuts Norwood in half, according to village officials.
Village residents have been frustrated with the fact that the long, stalled train has sometimes caused emergency vehicles and school buses to take significant detours to reach the other side of the village.
Trains have blocked crossings at Whitney and Bicknell streets. The trains cut off access to homes along Pine, Depot, Felton and Lang streets and Morgan and Town Line roads.
Safety concerns also have been raised about children playing around the stalled train cars.
Norwood Mayor James H. McFaddin told trustees this week that there have been recurring problems with the train stopping; the situation was thought to be rectified a year and a half ago.
At that time, Mr. McFaddin said, village officials had to travel to Jacksonville, Fla., CSX’s corporate headquarters. Officials had the problem resolved, but now it has resurfaced, the mayor said.
He said the village Police Department is prepared to ticket the engineer of the train if it stops in town for more than five minutes.
“The train has to be moving,” he said.