MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. — It's not strange to encounter a train track in Central Georgia. However, one Milledgeville woman says she's not 'all aboard' for a couple of lines running through the city and it's driving her crazy!
Susan Henson has lived in Milledgeville for her whole life. She says that the railroad tracks on North Jefferson Street and North Wayne street are throwing her off track.
"My name is Susan Henson from Milledgeville, Georgia and these tracks on Jefferson Street are driving me crazy,” she says.
Henson says trains haven't run on the tracks for a couple of years now, and says they've deteriorated since them.
"They've got holes in them, they've got big gullies in them. On Wayne Street, you've got some of the nails coming up on it!” she said.
Henson says it's damaged people's bumpers, undercarriages, and even the people themselves.
"Last week a trailer came loose as it crossed the railroad tracks, and hit one of Doyle Beckham's used cars,” she explains.
Henson says she's contacted the city, and CSX– the railroad that owns the tracks– and nothing has happened.
"We should fix these tracks to represent our town. We've been suffering with these railroad tracks long enough,” Henson says.
Jimmy Jordan is Milledgeville’s city attorney.
"CSX is mandated by law to maintain those right of ways,” he explains.
Jordan says under Georgia law, railroads must maintain their own tracks that cross public roads.
We reached out to CSX, and by email they said their trains no longer use those tracks, and it's maintenance is the responsibility of “the road authority”.
"Nobody from CSX has informed the City of Milledgeville, to my knowledge, that those tracks are abandoned,” Jordan says.
Jordan says even if the tracks aren't in use, it still falls on the company to fix them.
"They're very much aware of the condition of the tracks. They know that they have let them go unmaintained. That they are unsafe, and that is inexcusable for a company and a corporation the size of CSX,” he says. “They could fix them if they wanted to," he said.
We also talked to the Georgia Department of Transportation. They said the railroad does not even come up on their state highway system map, and that the tracks may be abandoned.
Jimmy Jordan urges folks to keep contacting CSX about their complaints.
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