(The following story by Richard Payerchin appeared on the Morning Journal website on September 21, 2010.)
LORAIN, Ohio — CSX Corp. needs to clean up its act when it comes to crumbling railroad bridges, Sen. Sherrod Brown said.
Citing debris falling from Lorain’s 28th Street underpass, Brown yesterday wrote to CSX Chief Executive Officer Michael Ward. He encouraged swift action to ensure falling concrete, wood and screws don’t harm pedestrians or the drivers of cars and trucks going under the railroad bridges.
“I am hopeful that these and potential other public safety concerns will quickly be remedied,” Brown wrote. “The citizens of Ohio and visitors to our state deserve swift action to ensure that possible harm related to these bridges is avoided.
“I am confident that you have put a plan in place to immediately address these pressing infrastructure investments, and I would appreciate being apprised of the steps you will take,” Brown wrote. “I appreciate CSX’s continued contributions to Ohio and look forward to working with you and your employees in the future to create jobs in the freight rail industry.”
Brown cited a Sept. 10 article in The Morning Journal that outlined ongoing problems with a CSX owned bridge on East 28th Street in Lorain. On Sept. 9, Lorain auxiliary police blocked the road when a piece of concrete, the size of a brick, fell onto a car driving under the bridge.
“It is my understanding that city authorities have been requesting repair on this bridge for nearly a year,” Brown wrote.
A CSX crew showed up last week to knock loose concrete off the structure and coat it to prevent water penetrating the structure, said James Reagan, acting administrative director of engineering and surveying for the city of Lorain. The railroad might consider using netting around the structure to catch debris, Reagan said, but the city has not heard of any formal CSX plan to renovate the structure.
“This is not the first incident and probably won’t be the last until the structure is rehabilitated,” Reagan said last week.
Brown also cited a Cincinnati news report last week. There pieces of the C&O railroad bridge on the banks of the Ohio River are falling from the span, putting pedestrians and drivers at risk of serious injury, the letter said. In Ashtabula, an August news report detailed 101-year-old Lake Avenue Bridge that was littered with fallen concrete and missing anchor bolts, according to Brown.