IN SUMMARY: The City of Crawfordsville invites the public to an open house that’ll provide preliminary designs on the Market Street crossing elimination project. It’ll be held at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 14 at the Crawfordsville Career Academy at 2255 Phil Ward Blvd.
The City of Crawfordsville announced in a press release that the public is invited to attend an open house that’ll provide early concepts to eliminate the existing railroad crossing on Market Street. The crossing is located in one of the city’s busiest districts, with time and continued usage eroding its exterior through rainwater-filled potholes and splintered wood. However, the biggest headaches have been the frequent train stops that can halt traffic in both directions for what feels like hours. Emergency response vehicles such as ambulances, fire engines, and police cruisers also fall victim to halted trains, delaying critical response times where lives could be at stake. CSX Transportation, one of the nation’s largest railroad companies, owns and operates this rail route.
In response to public feedback and a data-driven review, city government officials applied for and received a $1.12 million dollar grant in late 2024 from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to fund, design, and construct an improved grade separation at the crossing. Indianapolis-based HWC Engineering was contracted to design early concepts for this project, which will be the subject for the open house. HWC will share preliminary observations and designs for the public to provide input and ask questions. More public opportunities to view the ongoing project have been promised to be organized in the future.
“This project has been a long time in the making,” Crawfordsville Mayor Todd Barton stated. “Public input is critical, and we encourage the community to participate”.
The open house will be held on Tuesday, April 14, at the Crawfordsville Career Academy on 2255 Phil Ward Blvd. It’ll begin at 6:00 p.m.
A website was established to view additional information about the project and its design process as it develops. It can be viewed by clicking or tapping here.
To learn more about the City of Crawfordsville, click or tap here.
Headline file photo taken by Kurtis Broadstreet.