Schumer wants CSX, Madison County to agree on plan for Canastota bridge project

CANASTOTA — The North Court Street bridge in the village of Canastota is in “critical” need of repair, but CSX, which runs a rail line beneath the span, wants right-of-way controls as part of a reconstruction plan.

The railway’s right-of-way requests would increase the cost of the project 50 percent, something Madison County “can’t afford.”

That’s according to the office of U.S. Senator Charles Schumer (D–N.Y.), which provided details about the situation in a news release distributed today.

Officials estimate the bridge repair project will cost about $800,000, which Madison County has set aside for the work, Schumer’s office said.

CSX requested changes to the plans that would ensure the bridge doesn’t interfere with the rail line’s right-of-way. CSX’s requests would increase project costs by $450,000, without any offer to cover the additional expense, according to Schumer’s office.

Schumer’s office cited CSX policies indicating the implementing party or government agency must pay the cost of these changes.

Schumer explained that it is critical for CSX to work with Madison County officials because any further delay to construction could force county officials to permanently close the bridge, which would detour 5,000 cars and trucks into the village of Canastota each day.

Madison County has “worked hard” to appropriate $800,000 of funds for a project that “must happen,” John Becker, chairman of the Madison County Board of Supervisors, said in Schumer’s news release.

“We’ve planned for it. We’ve saved for it and we’ve put together a plan that will pay for it. For CSX to demand we alter the project in the eleventh hour and bill the taxpayers for the $450,000 just isn’t fair,” Becker said.

CSX can request changes to ensure other transportation routes and the public stay clear of the railway’s right-of-way, Schumer’s office explained.

CSX acknowledges in its letter to the Madison County Highway Department that the current plan generally satisfies its requirements.

However, it also asks Madison County to expand the width and clearance height of the bridge so that CSX can move forward on its plans to add two additional tracks and to construct a curved top portion to the bridge to prevent objects from being thrown at the railway, according to Schumer’s office.

The changes are “clearly” intended to support CSX’s plans for expansion and do not serve to enhance public safety, Schumer noted.

CSX’s “last-minute” requests are “prohibitively expensive,” Schumer contends, and he urged the company to work with Madison County officials to agree on a plan that will permit the bridge reconstruction while not costing the county additional money.

Work on the bridge cannot begin until both Madison County and CSX establish a construction agreement, Schumer’s office said.

Headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla., CSX Corp. (NYSE: CSX) has a transportation network that covers about 21,000 route miles of track in 23 states, the District of Columbia and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec, according to its website.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com