LIMA — A broken rail forced an emergency closure of the railroad crossing at Eastown Road near Elida Road on Wednesday. The closure forced Eastown Road through motorists to divert to Neely and Baty Roads, greatly slowing afternoon traffic.
The Allen County Engineer’s Office was notified of the closure at noon Wednesday, with an estimated repair of a few hours. According to Damon Fry, director of maintenance of way for the Chicago, Fort Wayne & Eastern Railroad, however, these repairs can be more lengthy at times.
“We have to fix it for the safety of the public and the track,” he said. “With this type of crossing, it’s usually an all-day project.”
Fry would not comment on the cause of the break, noting that he was in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and not at the scene. He did not believe that the repairs would interfere with Thanksgiving and Black Friday traffic.
“It should be back up before the end of (Wednesday),” he said in the afternoon.
Avoiding a railroad crossing was a familiar experience for Elida Road motorists. The closure came less than a week after the crossing at Cable Road, located on the same rail line, reopened after being rebuilt with a concrete base and a reduction from four tracks to three. That crossing was closed Nov. 9 through Nov. 20.
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