Train Track Blockages
Freight trains blocking the tracks are a well-known menace.
Every jog, bike ride, or dog walk on the canal towpath risks becoming a multi-hour ordeal.
The problem is bigger than just the inconvenience, too: it disrupts shifts at the wastewater treatment plant, it discourages cyclists from stopping in Brunswick, it prevents emergency vehicles from reaching the campground and boat ramp (important for river rescues), and it tempts people to try crawling under trains. It’s a disaster waiting to happen, and we had a close call when an Amtrak train hit a tractor trailer in 2022 due to backed-up traffic from a CSX train blocking the other track.
The Mayor and Council have talked with CSX and urged them to reduce the blockages. That advocacy is important and should continue. But Brunswick’s ability to influence CSX is very limited. And even if CSX plays ball for a while, nothing prevents them from changing their mind later.
It’s time for us to take control of this problem. We can’t fix 100% of it at once. A saying I took to heart in the Army is that a 70% solution when it is needed is always better than a 100% solution that keeps being pushed into the future.
Every jog, bike ride, or dog walk on the canal towpath risks becoming a multi-hour ordeal.
The 70% solution is to build a pedestrian bridge over the tracks. It will remove the risk of getting stranded when you go for a walk. It will let visitors enter Brunswick from the canal any time. And when there are emergencies, it will let EMTs get to the scene and carry the injured person to an ambulance waiting on the other side.
Importantly, unlike a vehicle bridge, it ought to be achievable in a reasonable time with a reasonable budget. And once it’s built, we’re no longer at the mercy of CSX.
The Mayor and Council were presented with potential bridge designs in late 2022. It will be one of my top three priorities to push that project forward until it’s done.