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Select Board wrestles with Royalston Corner culvert repair as FEMA and railroad permissions stall project
Summary
Board members heard that the Royalston Corner culvert partially collapsed in flooding and that completing a full replacement will likely require railroad coordination; the town engineer estimates a conventional repair at about $200,000 while boring under existing rail infrastructure could raise costs as high as $600,000, and FEMA reimbursement depends on permits and railroad permission.
Town roads staff told the Select Board that Royalston Corner Road contains a stone‑box culvert damaged in a flood that was temporarily patched but remains undersized and eroded underneath.
“Our engineer says to dig it and do what we wanna do is around $200,000, probably,” the roads official said, adding that if the town needed to bore under existing stone blocks to satisfy the railroad, costs could rise substantially: “But it could be $600,000 to try to bore that.” The official said CSX and other railroad schedules and fee structures have complicated progress and that FEMA has conditioned reimbursement on proper permits and coordination.
Board members discussed options including asking the town lawyer to contact the railroad to seek permission to remove or temporarily relocate track during work, and they approved a motion to pursue railroad permission and legal assistance so the town can move forward with engineered repairs. The board noted the governor’s and FEMA representatives’ requirements that the town secure the necessary permissions and permits before starting work to avoid risking reimbursement.
No final procurement contract was awarded at the meeting; the board directed staff to pursue legal contact with the railroad, continue engineering work, and return with more precise bids and any required legal options.
