CASTLE ROCK, Colo. — Moving the Union Pacific railroad tracks from the middle of town to prevent another train-car accident was the overwhelming request of more than 175 people at a Monday evening public meeting, the Denver Post reported.
The group of residents, parents and Douglas County High School students, still shocked by the crash last week that left 16-year-old Maureen Martin in a coma, met at Town Hall to voice their opinions.
Town officials called for driving prudence and patience while a transportation master plan – still 45 days away – is devised.
But those at the meeting questioned why trains are allowed to rumble through town at speeds of 40 miles an hour during the morning commute when students are driving to school.
Martin was on her way to class last Tuesday when her car stalled at the railroad crossing at Fifth and Front streets and was struck by an empty coal train.
She remains in a coma at Swedish Medical Center.
Speakers said protecting Castle Rock’s children from a repetition of last week’s crash was worth the cost of relocating the tracks – up to $70 million.
“Is 25 seconds to get out of the way of a speeding train the best we can do?” asked Larry Martin, Maureen’s uncle, as the whistle wail of a train less than two blocks away echoed through the hall. The railroad, he said, “has to chase the almighty dollar. But does it have to be at the expense of our children?”
Maureen Martin’s boyfriend, Vinny Veruchi, 17, who tried to push her car off the tracks with his pickup truck, urged the town to do something quickly so that “no one else will have to live through what our families have lived through this week.”
Union Pacific spokesman Dick Hartman said that while the railroad was sympathetic, “there are no quick and easy solutions to a very complex situation.”
Frank Gappa wondered whether “the timely delivery of empty coal trains” was worth the risk. The intersection, he said, “was never designed for today’s volume of traffic.”
About 17,000 vehicles and 40 trains per day use the intersection, said public works director Bob Watts. He outlined the partial solution of a flyover ramp above the intersection.
But the majority of attendees want the location of the tracks changed.
“I implore members of the Town Council to stand at the intersection during the morning and evening rush hours,” said Douglas County High School student Silvia Osthoff to a round of applause. Osthoff, who described herself as Maureen Martin’s best friend, continued, “There’s absolutely no margin for error there.”
She suggested the town take a lesson from Littleton, which eliminated all railroad grade crossings.
Ruth Madrid, who lives on Front Street near the intersection, said, “This isn’t the 1880s anymore, and there’s no reason why the railroad has to come barreling through the center of town.”
Norm Edgeington, 24, said the problem was not limited to high school students. “Everybody in town has been stuck on those tracks at one time or another. And the town government is too fragmented into little kingdoms to take effective action.”
Larry Martin called Monday’s meeting “a good first step.”
Castle Rock Police Chief Tony Lane said police are still investigating the incident.