U.S. Department ofTransportation 

Federal Highway Administration 

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Amtrak trains 

servicing the 

station block 

Kirkwood Rd 

Noteworthy Practice 

USING TRAVELER INFORMATION TO MITIGATE 

BLOCKED RAIL-HIGHWAY CROSSINGS 

Local Approaches to Signing Lead to Success 

At-grade rail-highway crossings that are blocked by slow-moving or stopped trains increase risks to public safety at 

both rural and urban locations. For example, emergency responders may be prevented from reaching individuals 

facing life-threatening health crises, pedestrians or children may attempt to cut through idling trains to complete their 

crossing, and commercial vehicles may detour onto local streets to reach their destination, endangering citizens and 

other travelers by using roads not designed to safely convey large, heavy trucks. 

Pointing the Way to a Safer Crossing in Kirkwood, Missouri 

The City of Kirkwood, a suburb of St. Louis, is located along 

the Jeferson City Subdivision of the Union Pacifc Railroad. 

The town of about 30,000 people features several railhighway crossings and sees an average of 28 trains per day 

pass through. This is particularly challenging on Kirkwood 

Road, a busy north-south arterial with an at-grade crossing. 

Amtrak trains at the adjacent Kirkwood Station regularly 

block the crossing four times each day as passengers board 

or disembark. Freight trains also pass through the crossing 

and block trafc for shorter periods. Since the average 

annual daily trafc on Kirkwood Road is about 29,000 

vehicles, even if the crossing is blocked only briefy, trafc 

can quickly back up. 

Left: Neon signs, which are no longer compliant with the 

Manual on Uniform Trafc Control Devices (MUTCD), have served 

for decades to direct drivers away from a busy at-grade crossing 

in downtown Kirkwood, MO. Source: FRA. Right: New, MUTCDcompliant, signal-actuated LED signs will replace the older 

signs. Source: City of Kirkwood. 

USE 

OVERPASS 

1 BLOCK 

Through 2018, the city used illuminated detour signs on the north and south approaches advising drivers to 

use the overpass a block west of the crossing. Ted Dunkmann, Kirkwood’s city engineer, estimates that the signs 

successfully diverted up to a thousand vehicles per day from the crossing. “Any time you can divert cars around a 

crossing so there’s no potential for confict, that’s a good thing,” Dunkmann noted. 

The original signs were neon, and had been in service for 

more than 30 years. Due to the age of the technology, the 

signs remained continuously lit and could not be connected 

to the single controller that ran the downtown signal system. 

In 2018, using Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality funds, 

Kirkwood began work to upgrade the signal systems on 

Kirkwood Road. The old signs will be retired and replaced 

with actuated signals, new controllers, and warning signs 

that use light-emitting diode technology and are compliant 

with the Manual on Uniform Trafc Control Devices. “We’re 

fortunate to have an overpass just a block away, which is why 

we can do preemption and diversion,” Dunkman said. 

Locations of illuminated signs in advance of the Kirkwood Road 

at-grade crossing and the nearby overpass. Original map 

©Google 2018. 
CHAMBERLAIN 

LANE 

TRAFFIC 

USE EXIT 32 

WHEN FLASHING 

Source: Google Maps ©2018. 

Other agencies are using similar approaches 

that have also proven efective. On I-265 in 

Louisville, KY, trains entering and exiting a 

nearby car factory block Chamberlain Lane. 

This MUTCD-compliant warning sign advises 

trafc to use the following exit (Exit 32) to 

avoid the blockage. Dual fashing yellow 

lights above the sign are triggered when the 

warning system at the crossing is activated. 

LOCAL APPROACHES TO MITIGATING BLOCKED RAIL-HIGHWAY CROSSINGS 

Warning Signs Keep Traffc Moving in Jackson, Mississippi 

Jackson is a rail hub in central Mississippi, with several rail lines 

transporting passengers and freight through the area. State Street, 

a major arterial, is bisected by two rail line crossings not far from 

Interstate 55. Because the of-ramp to State Street leads straight to 

the crossing, trafc often backs up onto the Interstate when a train is 

present, and there is no alternate route available for vehicles once they 

have exited the Interstate, and. As many as 30 to 40 trains move through 

this location over a 24-hour period, making it essential to keep trafc 

moving safely. 

Until 2008, gates installed on the KCS line were broken on a regular basis, indicating 

vehicles were repeatedly trying to make it through the gates before they closed. 

To address both the safety risks from impatient drivers 

attempting to “beat the train” as well as concerns expressed 

by motorists who often took the exit not knowing that their 

route would be blocked, the City of Jackson began to work with 

the KCS and CN Railroad, the owners of the tracks, on a way to 

warn drivers when the crossing was blocked ahead of time. This 

would allow drivers to continue on to the next exit, avoiding 

the crossing entirely but still reaching their destination via an 

alternate route. 

John Dinning, Manager of Public Works for CN Railroad, recalls, 

“We were brain storming, trying to put low-cost ideas together.” 

At the time, variable message boards were still a fairly new 

technology, he noted, and were cost prohibitive. 

They opted for a less costly solution: installing a post-mounted 

warning sign with train-activated fashers prior to the interstate 

of-ramp. The presence of a train at the State Street crossing 

triggers a radio link, which causes two yellow lights to begin 

fashing. The warning sign reads: “State Street – Expect Train 

When Flashing.” 

“It’s a simple solution, but it catches probably 95 percent of the people who drive the road every 

day,” Dinning added, noting that the sign has been successful enough that it has led to similar 

signs being placed at other of-ramp locations in the area that are afected by at-grade crossings. 

24 hours 

30-40 Trains 

FHWA-SA-18-072 http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov