Elderly residents in metro Atlanta are being left strapped in their homes for days at a time as freight trains block critical intersections and railroad construction shuts down access routes, creating dangerous conditions that have prevented emergency vehicles from reaching communities.
Senior Community Cut Off for 48 Hours
Bruce Baxter, a resident of a 55-and-older housing complex on Murphy Avenue Southwest near Atlanta’s West End, says trains have blocked the Lee Street intersection for extended periods, including one incident last week where a train sat stationary for two consecutive days. The blockage leaves residents who rely on walkers and canes with no way to access essential services. Baxter’s fiancée uses a walker for mobility, making it impossible to navigate around the obstruction.
Federal Railroad Administration records show residents have reported trains blocking this intersection 22 times in the past year. Some reports document people crawling over train cars to reach the other side. Other complaints detail first responder vehicles completely blocked from accessing the neighborhood, raising serious safety concerns for a community of older Americans who may require emergency medical attention.
Construction Compounds Transportation Crisis
While reporters investigated the West End situation, another community in Duluth contacted authorities about being trapped. Norfolk Southern closed a railroad crossing for maintenance this week, leaving workers stranded in their employer’s parking lot at 3625 Buford Highway on Tuesday evening. The company has not responded to requests for comment about the closure or how long residents should expect disruptions to continue.
What This Means
The situation highlights a growing conflict between freight railroad operations and residential communities in metro Atlanta. Many residents in the affected areas do not own vehicles and depend on walkable access to necessities. For senior citizens with limited mobility, a blocked intersection is not merely an inconvenience but a complete barrier to food, medication, and medical care. The repeated nature of these blockages, combined with the failure of emergency vehicles to reach residents, raises questions about whether railroad companies are violating local ordinances or federal regulations governing how long trains can obstruct public crossings.
Sources
Wsbtv: ‘We can’t walk anywhere’: Metro Atlanta residents say trains, construction leave them trapped
An excuse is “the skin of a reason stuffed with a lie.” Let’s move those trains. There are humans that matter. God is watching.
Being that I reside a few miles north of LaFollette, TN, CSX operates trains from Corbin, KY to Etowah, TN a few times a week. Sometimes the train will pull onto a siding to wait on another train to pass by. When the train does stop it could be as little as 15 minutes to 2 hours or more and a lot of the time the train blocks residents from crossing the double tracks to their homes. However, some of those families have school age children that get off the school bus at US Highway 25 and walk down to the tracks. Even as dangerous as it is, a lot of children will either climb over the train’s couplings or crawl underneath. Most have learned to listen to the train itself especially if the train brakes get released so they know the train is about to move. In addition, they also listen for two locomotive horn blasts that the train is about to move as well. CSX does not break a train anymore to let traffic get through let alone pedestrians pass by. At least, the older children watch after the smaller ones.
There are sometimes a train maybe that has explodes, then the rails are o.k to go ahead, like in the winter that I like
De-Couple the trains so people and vehicles can get through. It gets done up here.
Since when do trains care about people? Vanderbuilts have spent millions to9 make sure you don’t matter…..