Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — As a west side resident who travels 900 West on a daily basis, Salt Lake City Councilman Alejandro Puy knows all too well the hurdles many people who live, work or recreate on the west of the Union Pacific line have to jump in order to avoid slow-moving or stopped trains.
"It's almost like a maze sometimes to get out of the neighborhood," he said, speaking to KSL.com on Wednesday.
The problem has only worsened in recent years with trains reaching 2 to 3 miles in length. The other frustration is that freight train schedules are mostly kept secret, including when and where one will stop. This means people have no idea which routes will be blocked and for how long.
These blockages can also last for hours in some cases, which can pose safety concerns and be particularly burdensome for anyone without a vehicle. In fact, Salt Lake City is close to opening a new pedestrian bridge over the tracks at 300 North that was recommended by city transportation officials who said they witnessed students having to climb over stopped railcars to get to school.
With the number of complaints about stopped trains only increasing, Puy is now leading a citywide initiative to collect these grievances in the city's fight to end crossing blockages. The city launched a website in late September, where residents can submit their experiences that will be used as it seeks a remedy.
Have you ever been stuck at a train crossing? 🚃
— Salt Lake City Council (@slcCouncil) September 27, 2023
It's a real challenge for our Westside neighbors and visitors.
Imagine all the better things you could be doing before those delays.
That's what Council Member Alejandro Puy did in a photo campaign to shed light on the issue. Now… pic.twitter.com/JLcUFkyJpv
The city has heard some alarming tales already, such as a dispatcher talking about issues first responders had in reaching a woman giving birth, employers having to work around longer lunch breaks because their employees were stuck and children being late to school, Puy said.
"We need to start gathering data and the data in this case is stories, so we can actually humanize this issue," he said. "If you come to the west side every once in a while, you might experience it, but you have to live on the west side to sort of experience the extent of the impact on the community. That's what we're trying to curb."
Salt Lake City's freight train issues
Blocked crossings are the latest issue that Salt Lake City has brought up in regard to trains, which have been a fixture in the area for well over a century. The railroad corridor dates all the way back to about 1870, as Utah leaders sought to connect Salt Lake City to the transcontinental railroad line running through northern Utah.
While the lines continue to be an important resource in moving goods and materials — and even people through passenger rail service — they also resulted in an unofficial east-west divide within the city. By the 1940s, areas west of the railroad tracks were considered "undesirable," city officials note.
They add that these divisions still exist today, based on multiple demographics.
This division only grew with the creation of I-15, which also split the east and west sides up, while I-80 runs between the west side's neighborhoods. Combined, there are a limited number of options when it comes to railroad detours.
City leaders have also spent quite a bit of energy in recent years going after train horns on the west side. Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall said she's heard from east-side residents who told her it's "romantic" to hear the horns from a distance, but she contends it's a completely different story for homes near the railroad tracks.
"I will rent you a room next to one of those train crossings on the west side and you can see how unlivable that quality of life is," she said.
Seeking solutions
Blocked trains aren't the only nuisance at the moment. Salt Lake City recently set aside a little over $7 million in a sales tax bond toward adding more "quiet zones" on the west side, where trains only blow their horns when there's an imminent danger instead of automatically.
Union Pacific has yet to approve the city's designs and has been "quite unresponsive" with those efforts to this point, which is why the new crossings haven't been constructed yet, Mendenhall said on Wednesday. Once it does happen, it may finally settle that issue.
We're trying to find solutions ... and I'm hoping we can use those stories for something good.
– Salt Lake City Councilman Alejandro Puy
Salt Lake City is also participating in a study to determine the feasibility of burying some of the line that separates the east and west sides as it looks for ways to better connect the two sides.
The city is also looking into new screens that warn when a train is coming when it comes to train blockages, while also collecting stories to understand the real impact.
"It's a little outside of our lanes in some ways, but we want to solve the issue," Puy said. "We're trying to find solutions ... and I'm hoping we can use those stories for something good."
KSL.com reached out to Union Pacific for comment about the city's efforts. In a statement, a spokesperson for the company explained that it is working to "minimize blocked crossings" caused by stopped trains. Drivers and pedestrians can report blocked crossings through its response management communications center at 1-888-877-7267.
"Our goal is to keep trains moving, and we are working to move rail shipments more efficiently," the statement read, in part. "Beyond blocked crossings, Union Pacific spends about $1.9 billion annually on maintaining our rail infrastructure. It is an integral part of our operations and underscores our commitment to rail safety."
