Richmond Hill rail crossing needs to be fixed now: resident
Horst Domnik wants residents to demand the crossing be fixed before someone gets hurt

YorkRegion.com
Sept. 20, 2017
Teresa Latchford

Horst Domnik is fed up with the state of one of Richmond Hill’s railway crossings.

The 82-year-old resident passes over the rails on Elgin Mills Road East just west of Newkirk Road four times a day travelling to and from work and going home for lunch. He is fed up with the uneven, potholed crossing that he feels is a safety hazard for drivers.

“Someone needs to repair it before someone gets hurt,” he said. “It’s so bad it’s almost criminal.”

He fears that with the large volume of traffic crossing over it on a daily basis that someone will eventually hit a rut and lose control of their vehicle, injuring themselves and possibly others on the road.

He also blames the bumpy crossing for a number of car repairs he has had to pay for.

“I just don’t get it. The crossing at Rutherford Road is so smooth you don’t even notice you’re driving over it,” he said. “In any European country they would block the trains with their cars until it was fixed.”

Domnik has made numerous calls to the town and York Region to find out who is responsible for the repairs and when it would be fixed.

The Town of Richmond Hill confirmed that particular crossing is under the responsibility of the region since Elgin Mills Road is a regional road not maintained by the town.

“As traffic volumes continue to increase across the region, the impacts of any delays, especially those caused by at-grade rail crossings are magnified,” York Region’s roads operations manager Peter Pilateris said. “While the region works closely with the rail corridor owners and operators — in this case, it is CN Rail and Metrolinx on the Richmond Hill GO line — we do not control the rail corridor and its use.”

Having said that, the region is aware this is a priority crossing for rehabilitation and continues to monitor its condition. Warning signs, including ‘bump ahead,’ are placed in the area and will have potholes filled.

“Changes to improve the driveability of the rail crossing for vehicles needs to be undertaken by CN Rail, and we are dependent on CN Rail’s schedule to plan any rehabilitation work at the crossing,” he added.

There are plans for improvements at the crossing in 2018, but the timeline depends on CN Rail committing to its share of the work and needed resources at the same time.

In the long term, the crossing is listed in the region’s Transportation Master Plan as needing a separated grade, meaning the road would go over or under the tracks. The date has yet to be set for this project as it has to undergo budget consideration and agreed to by CN Rail and Metrolinx.

Compared to other at-grade rail crossings in the region, Elgin Mills has been labelled as lower priority by Metrolinx due to its location, physical constraints and ownership complexity, Pilateris added. It is also not included in Metrolinx’s 10-year express rail program.

Domnik believes if more people called for repairs, the job would get done.