The District of Squamish (DoS) is continuing to upgrade railway crossings in the region to meet new federal regulations.

In December the DoS spent around $40,000 to bring in an external company to undertake 21 field assessments of crossings to see what needed to be upgraded. A Transport Canada grant was also applied for, that, if successful would see approximately $130,000 pumped into the project.

The six crossings that were identified in December’s assessment were Loggers Lane & Hunter Place, Cleveland Avenue & Buckley Avenue, the pedestrian crossing between Bailey Street & Buckley Avenue, Leski’s crossing on Government Road, Depot Road, and Government Road south of Brackendale Elementary. Out of the 21 crossings, 2 have already received upgrades.

Matt Simmons, Capital Projects Manager at DoS says work is ongoing while they wait to hear the results of their grant application; “We’re out there doing some initial engineering and surveying right now, and with the grant, the idea is to get the detailed design completed for those projects, in anticipation of another grant taking for Transport Canada which is due August of 2017.”

Simmons says final designs would need to be approved by CN and Transport Canada but says the scope of upgrades ranges from vegetation removal and line painting to crossing gates and lights. Traffic volumes and forecasts for future transportation plans are being taken into account when considering upgrades and meeting the new regulations. He says the Cleveland Avenue abandoned tracks would likely be the biggest project.

“The regulations are specific as to lots of triggers and warrants” says Simmons in terms of what upgrades are needed in each area. Simmons believes proximity to schools is part of the evaluation for CN, Transport Canada and the District of Squamish.

Upgrades to all crossing sites have to be completed by 2021 in order to meet the new federal regulations.

Filed under: CN, District of Squamish, Grants, Railway, safety, Squamish, Tracks, Train, Transport Canada