Railroad Crossing Improvement Project Awaiting Approval

A $40,000 project to improve the railroad crossing on Manassas Drive near City Center and bring an end to the sounding of train horns is currently awaiting the approval of the city's finance department.

“We have the project ready to go, we're just waiting to get the go ahead,” Manassas Park Inspector and Project Manager, Calvin O'Dell said this week.

In April, city council voted on a plan to improve the safety around the crossing. Under the plan, the city will extend the sidewalk on both sides of the tracks and build a divider along the road to prevent cars from going around.

While the city will have to pay the costs upfront, O'Dell said that under a revenue-sharing agreement, the Virgina Department of Transportation will reimburse 50 percent of the costs.

The project is not covered under the Manassas Park Capital Improvement Plan, but because of the low cost to the city and improvement in safety, it's a project the city wanted to move forward with, O'Dell said in April.

The project will consist of pouring concrete, securing ground fixtures and setting up boundaries and gates. O'Dell said once the funding is approved, it will take about three months for the project to be completed. 

Transportation officials call the improvement a “supplemental safety measure” that is also a prerequisite to turning off the train horns at night.

There are two types of quiet zones for trains: A 24-hour quiet zone or a nightly quiet zone, which runs from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.

Trains may still blow horns in emergency cases.