(The following story by Lisa Rantala appeared on the News 9 San Antonio website on May 6.)
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Days after a massive train derailment south of downtown San Antonio, area residents began to raise their signs and voices in protest.
They are demanding the city guarantee they’re safety, saying only luck caused this week’s crash from being much worse.
“Reroute — Union Pacific,” is the chant and slogan southwest workers and neighbors are using.
It is beginning to overpower the noise from repair crews who are still cleaning up at the South St. Mary’s Street railroad bridge.
Protesters said this week’s train derailment was a serious wake up call and they don’t know what would have happened if any of the damaged parts were carrying hazardous materials.
“That’s really a fear and a concern for the children that go to the school,” said Ruben Solis of the Southwest Workers’ Union.
Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff agrees.
He said dangerous cargo shouldn’t pass through the heart of San Antonio and offers to help build connectors for Union Pacific that loop around downtown.
“It’s their line; they have a right to run on it. We can’t force them off their line,” said Wolff.
The county judge said if he can’t stop the traffic on all three rail lines that go through the city, he at least wants the tracks that pass the Alamodome removed.
Wolff is meeting with representatives from the city, the railroad company, the railroad commission and the Texas Department of Transportation Friday afternoon, in hopes of coming up with more concrete solutions to the problem.