Grant for Metro-North Grade Crossing in Chappaqua

Congresswoman Nita M. Lowey (Westchester/Rockland) announced $5,162,417 in Federal Railroad Administration grants to enhance safety and awareness of rail grade crossings in New York State.

These funds will help prevent tragedies like the February 2015 Metro-North crash in Valhalla, she said.

“We cannot allow one more preventable tragedy at a rail crossing in our region,” said Lowey, the Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Committee. “The heartbreaking Metro-North crash in Valhalla and too many near misses since remind us that we must continue to work to protect families at dangerous railroad crossings throughout the Lower Hudson Valley. I’m pleased these grants will help officials at all levels of government work together to ensure our communities are safe and secure.”

The first $1,347,500 grant will be used to add highway traffic signal pre-emption to seven grade crossings on Metro-North’s Harlem and Port Jervis Lines to activate the traffic signals at the intersections and allow queued traffic to exit onto the highway prior to the activation of the railroad gradecrossing warning systems.

1. Cleveland Street (Vahalla)

2. Lakeview Avenue (Vahalla)

3. Stevens Avenue (Hawthorne)

4. Roaring Brook Road (Chappaqua)

5. Washington Avenue (Sloatsburg)

6. Contractors Road (Tuxedo Park)

7. East Village Road (Tuxedo Park)

As part of the second project, $1,904,132 in upgrades will be made to three grade crossings to mitigate hazardous conditions between highway and rail traffic. The roadway, pavement markings, and signage at a heavily used grade crossing in North White Plains will be improved.

Finally, the third grant will provide $1,910,785 to install CCTV cameras to record grade crossing movements at 43 grade crossings within Metro‐North territory in New York to investigate specific incidents and analyze crossing/traffic operations for targeted modifications to improve safety at gradecrossings.

The recipients of this grant in New York’s 17th Congressional District are:

• Hudson Avenue (Peekskill)
• Virginia Road (North White Plains)
• Cleveland Avenue (Valhalla)
• Lakeview Avenue (Valhalla)
• Commerce Street (Vahalla)
• Roaring Brook Road (Chappaqua)
• Municipal Plaza/Ballard Road (Sloatsburg)
• Washington Avenue (Sloatsburg)

These grants are part of the Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements Grants program, a new funding opportunity that Congresswoman Lowey secured in the Fiscal Year 2016 Omnibus Appropriations Act. These funds are intended to improve the safety, efficiency, and reliability of passenger and freight rail systems. Congresswoman Lowey also fought hard to increase the set-aside funding for grade crossing improvements in the Highway Safety Improvement Program to $350 million in last year’s omnibus spending bill.

PHOTO: Metro-North train in Tarrytown/Patch archives