Railroad crossing repair slated to begin yesterday has caused changes to area traffic plans. If all goes well, the crossing work will be completed today and Highway 14 reopened but the railroad warned the work could take a week.
If you noticed a change in traffic patterns this week, the change can probably be attributed to the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad. On Wednesday, Highway 14 was closed between the stateline and the west edge of Superior to allow the railroad to repair the Highway 14 crossing. Confusion surrounded how long the repair would take and what was the best detour route.
Electronic message board signs posted by the highway department indicated the road would be closed on Wednesday and Thursday but a news release sent to this newspaper by the Nebraska Department of Transportation indicated the road would be closed for a week.
The official detour routes traffic from the junction of Highways 14 and 136 about 5 miles north of Superior west to Guide Rock and then south to U.S. Highway 36. While we suspect some drivers from out of the area who are not familiar with other alternatives followed the state's advice, many drivers more familiar with the area either decided to delay their trip or followed other alternative routes.
Hopefully, the repair project has not caused a backlog of trains waiting to get through Superior for this in the past has blocked county road crossings, including those on the alternative routes. Sunday noon, three trains were stopped in Superior waiting to move on.
The Republican River has added to the challenge of finding an alternative. The closure meant the Highway 14 bridge was not useful. Alternatives included county bridges at Hardy, Superior and Bostwick. Those selecting the East Superior bridge found the railroad's crossings in Superior and on the Webber road appeared to be worse than the Highway 14 crossing that was being replaced.
However, the highway crossing apparently had deficiencies the drivers were not aware of. It was of the modern cement plank design while the Central, Bloom and Valley View crossings are of the much older wooden plank design.
In mid-August, the Nuckolls County sheriff's office distributed a picture which showed one of the Highway 14 concrete crossing planks was loose and posing a traffic hazard. The plank was pressed back into place but we suspect it indicated a potential hazard lurked in that area.
Hopefully, while the crossing crew is in this area, they will also work on the Central Avenue and Bloom Street crossings. New switches and other track improvements appear to be underway at the cement terminal west of Superior.
The Valley View crossing which Webber Road drivers have been complaining about is in a different railroad division and its repair is probably not related to the repairs being made on the line's Nebraska side.
Thankfully, the fall harvest was winding down before the highway was closed.
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