Town councillors and staff are up in arms with the recent track crossing upgrades done by Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. in Innisfail, particularly at the 50 Street site located across from Fas Gas.
Public Works Supervisor Dan Gervais says he was told a couple of weeks in advance the company would be installing tracks that are 1.5 inches larger, but had no idea the result would be a 5.5 inch bump up on the west side of the main set.
“We spent a million dollars on our main street to make it look nice,” he said. “Now we've got a ski jump to get to it.”
CPR is switching from 115-pound rail to 136-pound rail as part of its Crossing Upgrade program, recently updating the centre of three sets of tracks. An angled bank was required for the crossing, since the tracks curve past Innisfail.
With only five feet between each set of rails it's hard to make up the difference in elevation between the older and newer tracks, said Gervais, who fired off a letter to CPR with Innisfail CAO Helen Dietz soon after construction had halted.
“I'd like to see them repair this as quick as possible,” he said. “Is it gonna stay like this?”
The town erected a 20 km/h sign at the crossing to warn motorists.
“We unfortunately were not able to complete the work this season,” CPR said in a statement. “As discussed with the town, we will be back in the spring to finish construction on the crossing and raise it to provide a smoother ride when transitioning over it.”
For council members who discussed the issue at their Nov. 13 meeting calling it a safety hazard, spring is just too long to wait.
“It is totally unacceptable and unsafe,” said Mayor Jim Romane. “Something must be done.”
Coun. Mark Kemball said the “brutal” intersection of rail and road could cause an accident.
“I don't know what they were smoking,” he said. “It's a launching pad.”
Gervais said because CPR left the work so late in the season, pavement is unavailable for the winter to ease the rise and drop between the rails.
“The thing is it's hard to get asphalt because all the asphalt plants are closed,” he said, noting they'll have to use coal tar in the interim. “It's just more work for us again.”
