With completion of Tower 55, Fort Worth will remain major rail hub
November 14,2014
Reposted from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram
It is officially called a “railroad interlocking,” but Tower 55 in downtown Fort Worth — site of one of the busiest rail intersections in the country — very well could have been called simply “the lock.”
Named for the tower from which north-south and and east-west rail traffic was managed for decades, the intersection in recent years has been known for its long delays of trains that backed up for miles in all directions. The constant congestion held up commerce, blocked intersections and was a major safety hazard, especially for children in some of the nearby neighborhoods.
Elementary-age youngsters in communities often cut off by stalled trains were known to crawl underneath parked freight cars to get to and from school.
Through a cooperative effort of industry and the state and federal governments, a $104 million project to remedy the problems of the 141-year-old intersection has been completed. Local, state and national dignitaries came together last week to celebrate the reopening of Tower 55, complete with the addition of a third north-south rail line on the eastern edge of downtown and upgrades of several pedestrian and car crossings.
Fort Worth-based BNSF Railway and Union Pacific Railroad provided $65 million of the funding for the project that significantly improves the flow of traffic through what once was a chokepoint for the 110 freight and passenger trains that pass through daily.
Completion of the project, which was done at a minimum inconvenience to passenger rail service and area motorists, will further reduce the already declining number of grade crossing accidents, U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said in a statement.
He added, “This is a winning investment because it improves safety, increases efficiency and strengthens the local and national economy.”
Another beneficiary of the upgrades is the environment. By eliminating large numbers of idling engines at railroad crossings and getting trains through Fort Worth quicker, carbon dioxide emissions will be reduced by about 95,000 tons a year, according to Lance Fritz, Union Pacific president and chief operating officer.
Fort Worth, part of the largest metropolitan area in the country without direct access to a seaport, has long been a rail hub. With these improvements, and the continuing growth of the rail industry, the city is poised to remain an important rail destination.
Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2014/11/12/6283768/with-completion-of-tower-55-fort.html#storylink=cpy