Dallas Fort Worth traffic: Texas 114 closed 24 hours as BNSF investigators assess damage to bridge

Texas 114 closed 24 hours as BNSF investigators assess damage to bridge

A section of Texas 114 just south of Texas Motor Speedway is closed and will remain so until late tonight or early Thursday, an official said. “A truck hit a railroad bridge,” said Texas Department of Transportation spokesman Val Lopez. “The railroad guys are assessing the damage to their bridge and have to get equipment in there to evaluate.” The collision was hard enough to move the tracks, said Fort Worth police spokesman Sgt. Pedro Criado. “The 18-wheeler hauling a steel beam tower hit the railroad tracks while a train was crossing over the bridge,” Criado said. An early assessment by Burlington Northern Santa Fe indicated that damage to the track is minimal, said BNSF spokesman Joe Faust. "But he did shake up that bridge a bit," he said. "We have about 40 trains a day going through that point. So we want to make sure that the bridge is secure." Texas 114 itself is fine, Lopez said, but until the railroad tressle is deemed safe, traffic will not be allowed to pass under it. Emergency crews were dispatched about 4:40 a.m. to the 2600 block of Texas 114, a Fort Worth police incident report said. The 18-wheeler was carrying a load of rebar cylinders westbound on Texas 114, near Farm Road 156, and when the driver tried to pass under the railroad, the top of the load struck the bridge, Faust said. “Damage was extensive,” he said. “We’ll have to hold trains for about 24 hours” from the time of the crash. Texas Department of Transportation decided to reroute traffic around Texas Motor Speedway until railroad inspectors are finished with their assessment, Faust said. Eastbound Texas 114 traffic is being rerouted to FM 156, Criado said. On westbound Texas 114, “the train stretches far enough to block the exit from the Speedway, so traffic is being blocked at Interstate 35,” Criado said.

Jun 6, 2012 9:37:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)