By Ken Lass
It has become impossible to live in Trussville and not be affected by the trains. They rumble and rattle through the city twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Sooner or later, they will block or at least delay you from getting somewhere.
Ken Lass, Tribune columnist
This was not a problem when Trussville was a sleepy little country town. Few anticipated then that our quiet burg would explode into one of the fastest growing cities in Alabama, that the demand for land on which to build houses would become so fierce that the city was challenged to control it. Nowhere was the boom more evident than on the eastern side of the tracks, where elaborate neighborhoods such as Trussville Springs, Windsong, Stockton, and Carrington Lakes sprang up from the woods and fields like wild mushrooms on a manicured lawn.
But while the landscape rapidly changed, one thing did not. Highway eleven, the main artery to Trussville’s businesses, schools, and restaurants, remained west of the tracks. So did access to Interstate 59. That means thousands of folks have to cross those tracks multiple times each day.
Which is fine, as long as the trains that so frequently occupy those rails are moving. It’s when they stop or slow to a snail’s pace that blood pressure begins to rise. Residents who live behind that rail line are all too familiar with being cut off, some with no alternate way in or out. Emergency vehicles are, at best, delayed or, at worst, stymied.
To be clear, I am not anti-train. Much the opposite. They give the city a certain old-school charm as they roll along, their shrill whistle cutting through the still air. They offer a bit of sentimental nostalgia, one of the last connections to that sweet little town that once was. There’s no questioning they are a vital part of the economy, transporting goods to businesses desperately in need.
Maybe it’s just a guy thing, but many of us grew up with model trains. My young grandson is fascinated to watch a real train chug past and then can’t wait to get home and play with his toy version. It’s one of our favorite things to do together.
There are those who will point out that Trussville has a bypass and, therefore, nothing to complain about. But anyone who has been caught in the gridlock of rush hour traffic on that overpass understands that the city’s expanding population has long since overwhelmed it and rendered it inadequate.
There are also those who say people knew where the house they were buying was located with regard to the tracks, so what did they expect? Well, I couldn’t say for sure, but they probably expected those trains would at least be moving.
Bottom line, the trains aren’t going anywhere (sometimes literally). They’re here to stay. So Trussville’s residents and trains are going to have to co-exist. According to reports in the Trussville Tribune, the railroads attribute the problems to lack of enough workers and supply chain difficulties, which result in haphazard scheduling and back-ups. They are working to improve the situation, but the patience of the community does not run deep.
A bill designed to limit stopped trains passed the Alabama House last spring. It was sponsored by Trussville’s Danny Garrett, who told the Tribune the problem is statewide. That was borne out when House representatives were so eager to address the issue they passed the bill with just one dissenting vote. But, like the trains, the wheels of government can turn slowly and sometimes grind to a halt. The bill died after being sent to committee in the state Senate. Now Trussville is working with the city of Birmingham and Norfolk Southern to apply for a grant to study the possibility of building more bypasses over, and in some cases under, the current intersections. Sounds promising, but this is just the genesis of a process that will take several years and untold millions of dollars to become reality.
Still, it has gotten the attention of the railroads. Maybe it’s my imagination or just wishful thinking, but I haven’t noticed as many stoppages in recent months. Mayor Buddy Choat says there has been ongoing communication with the railroads in an effort to minimize the problems.
That’s not much consolation to the parent who’s late for work or who’s struggling to get their child to school before the first bell, but it’s the closest thing to progress we’ve got.
So when those dreaded red lights start flashing, the wooden gates drop down to block your path, and the train cars start rolling by, don’t get frustrated and utter those bad words the kids in the back seat will repeat in front of the grandparents. Instead, shift the car into Park, set the brake, sit back, take a deep breath, and relax. You can always entertain yourself trying to figure out that weird graffiti on the train cars.
Solutions will be gradual. Try not to let your patience get derailed.
(Ken Lass is a retired Birmingham TV news and sports anchor and Trussville resident.)
