Here are a few of the legislative highlights from Tuesday’s Birmingham City Council meeting, in case you missed it.
ITEM 44
Today, the Birmingham City Council unanimously passed a landmark piece of transportation legislation that will pave the way for railway improvements that will drastically improve the quality of life for residents in the Harris Homes community and surrounding areas.
The resolution authorizes the Mayor to apply for $10 million in funding for a planning and engineering project, the first step of a much larger project to improve the rail infrastructure on the Eastern side of town. The improvements would eliminate several rail crossings and allow space for trains to stage their approach into Norris Yard in Irondale in such a way that does not impede street crossings.
“This is especially important when you consider the Harris Homes public housing community that is situated between two rail lines that diverge. Because it’s so close to the rail yard, trains will often park on those crossings, essentially blocking the residents in and creating a massive public safety issue,” Councilor Darrell O’Quinn said.
O’Quinn, who serves as the chair of the Council’s Transportation Committee said this has been happening every 7-10 days for the last 50 years. Moving forward, residents can finally anticipate a solution to this problem that’s plagued the community for decades.
The rail corridor is owned by Norfolk Southern who will also be contributing $1.5 million toward the planning and engineering grant. “Norfolk Southern has been a tremendous partner in moving this project forward. This is the largest financial commitment the company has made towards a project of this type, ever,” O’Quinn explained. “
Big infrastructure projects like this do take time to complete. The full scope of the project is roughly $150 million and will create overpasses and underpasses along the corridor for vehicles and pedestrians. At a minimum it will be a five-year project, O’Quinn explained.
“I personally live in the community that has been impacted by this, nearby to Harris Homes,” O’Quinn continued. “I’ve been engaging with residents about these train crossings for the last 15 or 20 years, well before I was elected to represent this district. So I am very glad to see a tangible step being taken towards a solution and I thank my colleagues for their support.”
Aside from the massive inconvenience of Harris Homes residents being trapped on both sides by parked trains for extended periods of time, it also creates a public safety issue for first responders who are unable to reach the community when there is an emergency.
Councilor Carol Clarke applauded the effort on Tuesday. “I want to thank Councilor O’Quinn and the Mayor for their efforts because this is like moving a mountain,” Clarke said. “We don’t have any jurisdiction over these rail lines. Today is just one example of the huge amount of effort it takes to push and wait and keep pushing to make progress. This is a big start and I’m so happy for the residents.”
Here is the item as it appeared on Tuesday’s agenda:
A Resolution authorizing the Mayor to issue on behalf of the City, a firm commitment to allocate $250,000.00 in local grant match in support of a $10,000,000.00 Railroad Crossing Elimination (RCE) planning and engineering grant application to the Federal Railroad Administration Railroad to develop highway-rail and pathway-rail grade crossing improvement projects that focus on improving the safety and mobility of people, goods and services. Norfolk Southern and the City of Trussville have committed to pay the remaining balance of the twenty percent (20%) local match requirement for the RCE grant. (Submitted by the City Attorney) (Recommended by the Mayor and the Budget and Finance Committee)