Sep 4, 2019 3 min read

State utility regulators signed off on plans for new safety measures at a Centerville railroad crossing, 18 months after a collision with a train there sent the driver of a tractor-trailer to the hospital.

The five-member Public Utility Commission unanimously approved the settlement – which includes a new sign barring tractor-trailers from making left-hand turns from Route 88 onto Maple Glenn Road – on Aug. 29, adopting the recommendation of an administrative law judge regarding the joint deal involving the borough government, railway owner Norfolk Southern, state Department of Transportation and PUC independent Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement.

“We’re happy that there’s a resolution and pleased that everybody is going to work jointly and cooperatively to make safety improvements for the crossing,” said PUC spokesman Nils Hagen-Frederiksen.

The PUC initiated an investigation in the months after a train crashed into a rig carrying hydrochloric acid as it was driving over the tracks on March 6, 2018, spilling 40,000 pounds of acid and prompting the temporary evacuation of nearby houses. Ohio truck driver Jacob Shank’s injuries were severe enough that he was flown to Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh.

It was the sixth incident involving a train and a vehicle at the spot since 1990.

It was initially unclear if the crossing was public or private. The commission declared it public at the borough’s request late last year.

Under the settlement, the local government agreed to install the no-left-turn sign for trucks at the intersection, which is about 25 feet north of where Maple Glenn crosses the single set of tracks.

There is already an advance warning sign on the highway for vehicles heading south toward the intersection, but borough officials also agreed to add a flashing warning signal on Route 88 and stop lines to the approaches on Maple Glenn.

The railway company agreed to install a 30-foot cantilever with an electronic bell, plus an apparatus that will trigger the arm and the bell to block the crossing while trains pass.

All work is to be completed by June 30, 2021.

PennDOT agreed to reimburse Norfolk Southern for its costs under the deal using funds from money earmarked for projects to make public crossings less dangerous.

PUC documents say about 18 trains travel through the crossing per day at speeds of 20 to 40 mph.

Mon River Dock – which owns property adjacent to the crossing and operates the business where the truck was to make the delivery – wasn’t formally a party to the settlement. Nevertheless, it said in a letter to the commission that it would share the borough’s costs.

The borough – whose police department is pursuing a criminal case against Shank – and the property owner agreed on another point, the commission said in its order.

“Both the Borough and Mon River Dock noted that they remained concerned about the speed of the trains through the crossing but recognized that relief must be pursued in other forums as the Commission does not have jurisdiction of the issue,” according to the order.