SCHUMER CALLS ON CSX TO ADDRESS DANGEROUS RUNOFF DIVERTED FROM RAILROAD BRIDGE OVER MAIN COXSACKIE STREET TO SIDEWALKS AND RESOLVE ONGOING SAFETY CONCERN ONCE AND FOR ALL

After Gray Liquid Substance Began Leaking From The Coxsackie Bridge Onto Cars Passing Below This Past March, CSX Failed To Find Permanent Fix, Diverting Liquid To The Sidewalk And Leaving It Wet And Slick To Cause Further Safety Concerns For Local Residents – Schumer Is Now Calling On CSX To Fix The Issue Once And For All

Schumer: We Can’t Let Safety Of Coxsackie Go Off The Rails – It Is Time For CSX To Fast Track A Solution To This Hazardous Issue

After meeting with frustrated community leaders at the CSX train bridge over Mansion Street in Coxsackie, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer today called on CSX to immediately address the long-standing safety concern at the Coxsackie bridge, where earlier this year, local officials sounded the alarm over a potentially dangerous gray substance leaking onto cars passing below. Schumer said that although CSX initially responded by placing plastic culvert pipes cut in half to replace the original 1930s steel drains, the new installation only diverted the water to the sidewalk, leaving it wet and slick and creating yet another safety issue for residents in the Village. Schumer is now doubling down on his previous efforts, sounding the alarm and calling on CSX to fix this ongoing issue impacting Greene residents for good.

“The potentially dangerous gray substance leaking from the Coxsackie bridge this past March – only to be diverted by CSX to the village’s sidewalks to cause further safety concerns on the main walking route – has increasingly become a hazard to the community. CSX’s so-called “fix” in April only put more residents in danger, setting off safety alarm bells around the bridge and the surrounding sidewalks,” said Senator Schumer. “That is why I am calling on CSX to immediately investigate this issue to quickly address this vital safety concern before more Coxsackie residents get hurt. CSX needs to be communicative, expedient and collaborative in their efforts to fix this increasing concern, and I’ll keep fighting until CSX takes action and ensures residents that this problem won’t go off the rails any further.”

“While CSX and all rail operations are a vital supply chain for our country, their tracks pass through thousands of small communities throughout the country just like Coxsackie. Public Safety for CSX and rail operations should be the highest priority and as Mayor it certainly is for me. While the trains come and go all day and night this bridge remains here as part of the CSX system and we simply ask, no, we demand that it be safe for the public to walk and drive under and that it be tended to so as not to be an eyesore for the community,” said Mark R. Evans, Mayor of the Village of Coxsackie.

Schumer said that this past April, when CSX started initial repairs on the rail bridge in West Coxsackie that had been dripping a messy substance on passing cars, numerous drivers reported being unable to get the substance off their vehicles. The substance wreaking havoc on the Coxsackie community is made of mud that seeped into the bridge – but this is not the first time the bridge has caused issues for area residents. Earlier this year, the mayor of Coxsackie said the bridge had been an issue his entire time in office, spanning almost 15 years.

Several years ago, a young man walking with his wife and baby in a stroller was hit in the head with a chunk of concrete from the bridge, causing a deep laceration that required transport via ambulance and numerous stitches. The local community also wants to know more about the “hammer” tests that CSX routinely conducts on the bridge, which consistently result in fallen pieces of concrete.

Schumer explained that since CSX diverted the liquid away from the bridge and onto the village sidewalks, the water is now causing an additional safety issue on one of the main walking routes in town, leaving it ripe for residents of all ages to fall down and hurt themselves. Schumer explained that this route is the only pedestrian path that crosses under the railroad tracks. and Furthermore, it also serves as a walking route for local school children, who will be faced with hazardous conditions as they begin the new school year.

Schumer is now calling on CSX to not only solve the issue once and for all, but also to build a cooperative, responsive relationship with the village with respect to CSX’s operations in the future.

A copy of Senator Schumer’s letter to the CSX appears below:

Dear Mr. Hinrichs,

I request your attention to a long-standing safety situation regarding a CSX bridge in Coxsackie, New York, and the village’s inability to receive substantive engagement from CSX.

In March of this year, a gray liquid substance began leaking from the Coxsackie bridge onto cars passing below. Nearly every car in the Village had several gray splotches on the right side of the car. Cars were swerving out of the lane to avoid this and causing many near misses with the traffic coming from the other direction.

CSX responded by placing plastic culvert pipes cut in half to replace the original 1930s steel drains. This installation has diverted the water to the sidewalk, leaving it wet and slick, ripe for residents old and young to fall down and hurt themselves. It creates another safety issue for residents in the Village, as this is a main walking route in town, the only pedestrian path to cross under the tracks, and a walking route for school children who are now faced with hazardous walking conditions.

I also understand from village officials that there have been issues in the past with the bridge. Several years ago, a large chunk of concrete fell and hit a father in the head as he was walking with his wife and baby in a stroller, causing a large laceration that resulted in an ambulance transport and many stitches. CSX periodically conducts “hammer” tests on the bridge, but the village also routinely picks up concrete under the bridge that has fallen off.

My staff has previously contacted CSX about the leaking bridge and slippery sidewalks, the town has yet to receive a substantive response from CSX, and with the school year ramping up again, I urge you to address this issue once and for all and to eliminate the hazards draining from your railroad bridge above the road. Moreover, I ask that you to build a cooperative, responsive relationship with the village with respect to CSX’s operations in the future, given the long-standing concerns of the village.

I look forward to your response and the resulting action in the Village of Coxsackie and will continue to follow-up on this issue. Thank you for your time and attention to this matter. Should you have any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact me or my staff.

Sincerely,

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