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Mayor urges support for federal grant to build South Lincoln rail overpass; council members back safety and economic arguments
Summary
Mayor Dickey described a federal grant opportunity to build an overpass at the South Lincoln rail crossing, noting heavy train traffic and safety concerns; council members said removing delays would help economic development and emergency response.
Mayor Dickey told the Oct. 21 Salem City Council the city is pursuing a federal grant to build an overpass at the South Lincoln rail crossing to reduce safety risks and vehicle/pedestrian delays.
The mayor said the crossing sees about 64 trains a day on average and that Freshmark, the city’s largest employer, is located south of the tracks. She said a small local match may be required and that it would be split between the city and the county; she also said staff are gathering letters of support and have had county officials indicate willingness to contribute funds.
Councilman Harrington and Councilman Stockman both spoke in favor of pursuing the overpass. Harrington said eliminating train delays would help the city’s economic-development efforts and ease traffic for emergency vehicles. Stockman noted the overpass would allow traffic to go “over” the rail line and expressed support.
No formal motion or vote on the overpass grant was recorded at the meeting; the mayor requested letters of support and described the project as near the top of state-ranked projects for a federal program. Council did not commit local matching funds at the meeting.
