Rail crossing on Sam Barkley Drive near Highway 15 to temporarily close for replacement

The railroad crossing at the east end of Sam T. Barkley Drive near Highway 15 will be closed temporarily so it can be replaced.

The crossing, which is four-tenths of a mile (.4 mile) west of Highway 15, will be closed at 8 a.m. Friday, Nov. 6, and remain closed until 5 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 7th.

A contractor for  the Ripley and New Albany Railroad (RNA) is expected to replace the rail crossing during the 33 hours it will be closed.

Third District Union County Supervisor C. J. Bright learned of the temporary closing from the private contractor Thursday afternoon and informed NEMiss.News.

The crossing has needed to be replaced for quite some time, but the contractor decided on short notice to start the work Friday morning. It is not uncommon for such work to be done with little notice as such contractors are often from out of state.  Anticipated weather and scheduling of needed crews, equipment and materials frequently come together on short notice.

The Ripley and New Albany Railroad operates 26.5 miles of track from New Albany into Tennessee. The railroad is owned and operated by Pioneer Railcorp and has a capacity of 286,000 pounds per loaded railcar.

The RNA is the successor to the Ship Island, Ripley and Kentucky Railroad which was founded by Colonel William Clark Falkner in 1878. It was later part of the Illinois Central Railroad. The portion of the railroad right of way running from New Albany to Houston, Mississippi was closed during the early part of the 21st Century. That part of the old railroad right-of-way is now the Tanglefoot Trail, which is open to cyclists and hikers.