(The Associated Press circulated the following story by Paul Davenport on May 7.)
PHOENIX, Ariz. — Union Pacific, trying to clear the way for double-tracking its main line across southern Arizona, has agreed to provide $35 million over the next 25 years to help build grade-separated road and rail crossings in growing Pinal County.
The agreement announced Wednesday by the Omaha, Neb.-based railroad, county officials and mayors of Eloy, Maricopa and Casa Grande will have Union Pacific (nyse: UNP – news – people ) pay major shares of the costs of designing of three or possibly four underpasses or overpasses.
That represents a change of approach for UP, which previously tried to dampen suggestions that it pay for building grade-separated crossings. A UP official said in 2007 that underpasses and overpasses can cost $10 million to $30 million apiece.
“It’s a progression. We were able to sit down” with the local officials to discuss their concerns, said Luis Heredia, a UP community affairs director.
The agreement calls for the local governments involved to identify which crossings will get bridges or underpasses and to support UP’s double-tracking when the Arizona Corporation Commission considers UP’s applications for changes to existing grade-crossings.
The commission regulates railroad safety.
“It’s welcome news that the county and the railroad have reached an agreement. I’m sure that we will take the agreement into consideration when we make a decision on the rest of the crossings, but we’re not bound by that agreement,” said commission Chairman Mike Gleason.
The officials involved would be wise to invite commission representatives to attend and even participate, said Commissioner Jeff Hatch-Miller. “We have final say – yea or nay.”
Pinal County is located in south-central Arizona between Phoenix and Tucson. The county has seen extensive population growth as well as increased traffic on local roadways in recent years, raising concerns about the railroad’s track expansion project.
“We see those crossing numbers and estimated crossing numbers for the next 10 years and the estimated numbers will scare you,” Gleason said.
Building grade-separated crossings for major roads would allow vehicles to cross either above or below the tracks, regardless of the expected increase in freight train traffic that will use the double-tracked “Sunset Route” line that connects Los Angeles and El Paso, Texas.
Gleason and Hatch-Miller said the panel’s insistence that it consider UP’s requests for changes to 50 grade crossings across the state to accommodate double-tracking individually and not as a batch spurred the railroad’s willingness to work with local officials on the issue.
The commission has not required the railroad to build bridges any of the nine crossings already reviewed, Heredia said.
“The decision of grade-separated crossings are really a local decision,” Heredia said. “They depend on a lot of issues – right of way acquisition, traffic flow.”
Pinal County officials said construction of the first crossing under the agreement would begin within 10 years.
“That may seem like a long time away but the agreement outlines a realistic timeline for planning, engineering and land acquisition,” said Supervisor Lionel Ruiz.
The agreement also calls for UP to take other steps, including donating a former depot in Casa Grande to the city and helping relocate the Amtrak passenger station in Maricopa.