Work Begins At Deadly 87th Street-Pulaski Road Metra Crossing

HOMETOWN, IL – Changes are set to begin Wednesday, Aug. 26, the railroad crossing at 87th Street and Pulaski Road where there have been two deadly crashes. The crossing at 87th Street and Pulaski Road will be closed for ten days when work begins to replace the railroad crossing on Metra’s Southwest Service Line. The crossing will be closed at both roads to all traffic.

Residents have long complained about the confusing railroad crossing. A Metra train slammed into a car in December 2015 that got caught on the tracks in bad weather, killing two young women, one of whom was pregnant, and seriously injured four others. In February, a train hit a car that struck a pedestrian waiting at the gate crossing. Three other people were injured. Again, snowy conditions played a role in the accident.

Metra regularly schedules rail crossing maintenance, which includes the removal and replacement of rails, ties, ballast, rubber panels and asphalt. The project involves additional work, including repositioning of the intersection’s railroad crossing gates closer to the tracks, adding pedestrian gates and replacing the signal bungalow.

The crossing will be closed to traffic on 87th Street and Pulaski Road beginning at 9 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 26 and will reopen to traffic on Friday, Sept. 4. Detour signs will be posted advising motorists to use 95th Street to cross the tracks during construction.

• Motorists on Pulaski Road will be detoured via Southwest Highway and Cicero Avenue to 95th Street;
• Those traveling on 87th Street will follow detours along either Cicero or Kedzie avenues to 95th Street.

Crossing renewals provide a smoother ride for motorists and ensure the continued safety of railroad operations. The total cost of the project, including gate, track and signal work is expected to cost about $2.3 million with about $350,000 of the project costs funded by the Illinois Department of Transportation.

Related:

• 4 Critically Injured When Metra Train Hits Vehicle
• Pedestrian Struck By Vehicle In Metra Accident Dies
• Metra Train Strikes Car in Hometown, 2 Dead, 4 Hurt: Reports