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Related
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City Plans Facelift For Downtown Laredo (8/28/2010)
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Mexican Consulate will have Saturday outreach (6/17/2010)
By: FRANCISCO DÍAZ
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Yesterday there was chaos in the city after Kansas City Southern crossed its carts and blocked the avenues for a longer time than the one permitted by the municipal ordinance, causing a very inconvenient congestion in the Laredo downtown area.
Anyone who as going to that sector of the city, to visit the district courts, or were going to pay taxes or carry out any other type of bank transaction had to wait more than 30 minutes so that the trains could move out of the way and they could continue on their way.
San Bernardo, Salinas, Juarez, Convent, and other avenues in the area were the most affected ones by the congestion.
It must be pointed out that the Kansas City Southern trains are the ones that circulate from west to east and vice versa, crossing through the city's "heart", while the Union Pacific trains go from north to south, blocking the city's Westside avenues.
A municipal ordinance, which dates back to1917, but that has been reformed several times, prohibits railroad companies to block the city's main avenues for more than 5 minutes.
This same ordinance establishes that anyone that does not comply with this ruling can be fined up to 5000 dollars for each time they violate this law. That means that if they block traffic for 10 minutes they receive two fines.
However, it also seems like the local government doesn't really care about this issue, because police officers are never present when the train blocks the main avenues for long periods of time.
In previous years some serious efforts were made to try and reduce the problem, however the railroad companies prefer to pay the fine, since 500 dollars is practically nothing for them, compared to the size of their businesses.
Comments
- Grammar and research aren't the point. Railroads are in the habit of inconveniencing and putting Laredoans at risk.by Noon dancer, 02/12/2009 10:39
+0The posed article has its mistakes. However, the point is well made. The Kansas City Southern trains habitually block access throughout Laredo.
This happens in the morning when folks are on their way to school or work. It happens again at noon and in the afternoon.
By blocking our access, our efficiency suffers, our time is wasted and our safety is in jeopardy.
Ambulances and fire department have to take longer routes on emergency routes when the train is blocking an intersection.
My next comment may be to to the Railroad Commission and several other safety agencies.
- donby chucho, 01/12/2009 21:38+0
___the Laredo Sun is put out by the people of a mexican newspaper, thus the articles are translated by a machine into English, therefore the mal grammar and euphonisms
- There is already a resolution agreed toby Hire me, 01/12/2009 13:38+4
The "railroad companies that don't care" have been working for years to get most of the trains out of downtown.
In fact a bridge outside of town and bypass will be built, after much work by the "local government (that) doesn't really care.
" A year ago one railroad filed for permits needed for construction. I tried to link to articles but the comment section won't allow that.
I wonder why the reporter didn't bother to google the topic and report that this problem will eventually disappear? But then I searched using "Laredo, railroad, bypass, Kansas City Southern" instead of "Oppressive Fascist Railroad Pigs! Social Justice! WWCD (What Would Che Do?)"
- There needs to be a resolution to this ongoing problemby Dennis McCrea, 01/12/2009 09:19-2
Thanks be to the Laredo Sun for bringing this problem again to the forefront. It would be such a farsighted effort to resolve this problem, i.e.
to take the rail traffic out of the center of town via a rail crossing on the north side of town for the UP and a crossing on the south side of town for the KC Southern.
Let the city and county leaders resolve this issue for the betterment of the community in the next 100 years.
