New Castle Officials Stepping Up Safety At Railroad Crossings
CHAPPAQUA, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Since last month's fiery, fatal train crossing accident in Valhalla, there have been a few close calls in Westchester County.
New Castle is taking action.
As WCBS 880's Sean Adams reported, one crossing of concern is in Chappaqua near the old Readers Digest campus. Just off the Saw Mill River Parkway, Roaring Brook Road can back up as people head toward Horace Greeley High School.
New Castle Officials Stepping Up Safety At Railroad Crossings
Ideally, New Castle officials would like to build a bridge over the tracks. But since that won't happen anytime soon, they're taking other steps, including having police ticket drivers who wait too close to the tracks.
"Bottom line is you just can never block the box," New Castle Town Supervisor Robert Greenstein said. "You can't assume a train is not going to come because one just came. Just don't block the box. Just don't cross the line unless you can completely make it to the other side."
In conjunction with the state Department of Transportation, the town also plans to install better warning signs and to paint better markings on the pavement.
On Feb. 3, a Metro-North train crashed into an SUV at a grade crossing in Valhalla, sparking an explosion and fire that burned out the first car of the train. The driver of the SUV and five people aboard the train died.
