A new railroad crossing in Pocatello? Union Pacific studies potential crossing in busy area
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POCATELLO – The Gate City could see a new railroad crossing added to its network of roads, providing a new route of transportation to the busiest part of town.
Early this month, Pocatello City Council members voted unanimously in favor of approving an agreement that authorizes the beginning of preliminary engineering work that will determine if a railroad crossing connecting Flandro Drive to Pocatello Square would be feasible.
Pocatello Square, which is the section of Yellowstone Avenue around the diverging diamond interchange, is Pocatello and Chubbuck’s most heavily trafficked corridor. It hosts a number of popular retail destinations, such as Walmart and the new Pine Ridge Mall development, as well as numerous restaurants. This railroad crossing would provide an alternative route of travel into the busy commercial corridor.
“Anytime we can find alternative routes to balance the traffic flow out with different locations, that’s definitely a big perk for the city,” said Tom Kirkman, director of Pocatello’s Public Works Department.
Pocatello Square is connected to the rest of the city primarily by the Quinn Road Overpass to the south and the diverging diamond interchange to the north. Additionally, drivers can enter the area through Pole Line Road and West Quinn Road, but those routes are more out of the way for virtually anyone living in Chubbuck and those who live on the eastern side of Yellowstone Avenue in Pocatello.
The way Kirkman sees it, adding another railroad crossing could help to ease the current traffic congestion on Yellowstone Avenue.
“Yellowstone Avenue is getting to be quite congested. We see anywhere from 25,000, sometimes 30,000 cars a day,” he said.
This proposed crossing would allow motorists on Flandro Drive to turn onto Phil Meador Avenue and cross the train tracks to Bullock Street, thereby avoiding both the overpass and the interchange entirely.
The entity responsible for conducting this preliminary engineering work is the same one that uses the railroad tracks – the Union Pacific Railroad Company, or UPRR.
“We met with the developer and the city to kick off this project … and are waiting for more information from the developer to begin the engineering process. If all progresses smoothly from here, the project could be completed in as little as 24 months,” said Mike Jaixen, a senior communications manager for Union Pacific, in a written statement to EastIdahoNews.com.
The developer, Rick Vanden Boomen, initiated a study of this potential railroad crossing, Kirkman said. Vanden Boomen is currently developing the property where the crossing would be located, which is approximately 30 acres.
EastIdahoNews.com reached out to Vanden Boomen to learn more about his development but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
The agenda items attached document includes a map of the development, which shows three new roads connecting ten subdivided lots.
Rather than show a design for a potential railroad crossing, the development map shows a cul-de-sac by the railroad tracks.
“He’s built in contingencies so if the crossing doesn’t come to fruition, he’s still got his options,” Kirkman explained.
This development is zoned for industrial use and is bordered by the railroad tracks, Interstate 86, some commercial properties, and an auto dealership.
According to Pocatello city code, land zoned industrial is appropriate for “intensive industrial uses including industrial service, manufacturing and production, warehousing and freight movement, railroad yards, waste-related and wholesale sales activities. Activities in the (industrial) district include those which involve the use of raw materials, require significant outdoor storage and generate heavy truck and/or rail traffic.”
In order to make a new at-grade railroad crossing possible, Union Pacific requires other at-grade crossings to be closed.
“To enhance highway-rail grade crossing safety, Union Pacific Railroad endorses the United States Department of Transportation’s goal of reducing the number of at-grade crossings, both public and private, through consolidation, elimination, grade separation and restriction of the number of new crossings installed,” reads Union Pacific’s website.
In this instance, the railroad company required that if this crossing was established, two at-grade railroad crossings would be closed. But thanks to the developer, the crossings being considered are not located within the city limits of Pocatello or Chubbuck.
“At first, there was talk about (closing the crossing at) McKinley and Z Street, and potentially one other. We didn’t feel like we wanted to make that commitment, so the developer has stepped up and provided two closures up north of us,” Kirkman said during the City Council meeting.
Whether or not Union Pacific deems the creation of this new railroad crossing feasible, the cost of construction for the development’s newly established roads will be taken on by Vanden Boomen himself. Afterward, the city would take over maintenance of these roads.
And that’s not all the developer will be paying for. The contract that authorized the preliminary engineering work was a reimbursement agreement, in which Vanden Boomen agreed to pay $30,000 for the study, as well as any amount where the actual costs exceed this estimate, rather than the city paying for it.
“It’s just basically a big win-win for the city of Pocatello,” Kirkman said.