Railroad Company Responds to Supervisors’ Pressure

Union Pacific railroad crossing on E. College Avenue. Photo by MCDOT.

Milwaukee County supervisors, whose power is normally constrained by state statute, are flexing their statutory authority and demanding Union Pacific fix a railroad crossing in Cudahy.

The railroad owns the line crossing E. College Avenue between S. Pennsylvania and S. Howell avenues. The crossing is buckling, cracking and lifting the pavement, creating a hazard.

“It’s been damaged for almost two years, we inquired and asked for assistance, and we’ve never gotten a response back,” said Donna Brown-Martin, director of the Milwaukee County Department of Transportation (MCDOT). “So this year we we did some research and suggested to [Sup. Steven Shea] that what would be helpful is to utilize state statute to help us get a response from the railroad.”

Shea, along with Sup. Steve Taylor, sponsored a resolution requiring the railroad to repair the crossing. The board’s Committee on Transportation and Transit unanimously approved the resolution Wednesday.

“I’ve received numerous complaints about this crossing and that it’s unsafe for cars,” Shea told the committee. “I understand that this company has up until now completely neglected their duty under law to keep that crossing in good repair.”

The resolution invokes two state statutes. The first requires railroad companies to keep the surface of crossings between the tracks and extending 4 feet on either side of the rails in good condition. The second says county boards can “by resolution require any railroad company to pave, plank, repair, change, or otherwise improve the crossings, as the needs require.”

The resolution was aimed at finally getting a response from the railroad, and it seems to have already worked. Recently, upon hearing about the resolution, the railroad reached out to MCDOT.

“They stated they could be out there relatively soon to get the railroad crossing fixed,” Brown-Martin said. “And they wanted to know if we could pull the resolution.”

Her response: “No, not at this time, it’s already been submitted.”

A spokesperson for the railroad told Urban Milwaukee, “Our team has been planning to address concerns with the approaches to the railroad crossing on College Avenue near Milwaukee’s General Mitchell Airport in the coming weeks, once weather conditions permit.”

Brown-Martin urged supervisors to move forward with the resolution to ensure the railroad follows through with its new commitment to fixing the crossing. If the company doesn’t, MCDOT will submit the resolution to the Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Railroads, initiating a process to require repairs under the threat of fines. 

The full board will vote on the resolution in early February.

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