County Highway N Overpass Eligible For State Funding

The Fond du Lac County Highway, Airport and Facilities Committee have approved moving forward with engineering and designing a railroad overpass over County Highway N in the Van Dyne area. County Executive Al Buechel says that includes purchasing some minor right of way purchases too. He says the highway has always been classified as a minor collector of traffic. But County Highway Commissioner Tom Janke  was able to ask for a reclassification using a twist on the way the traffic was counted. He successfully argued that the railroad blocks the intersection and if a bridge was in place the traffic count would go up. So the highway was reclassified as a major collector and is eligible for state funding under the rural transportation program. Buechel says in addition to normal traffic when trains are stopped at the intersections it is hard for police, fire, and EMS to get through. He says a train can block three or more roads, which delays needed response. Buechel says he sent a letter to officials in the Town of Friendship because next Tuesday there is a pre-hearing with the state commissioner of railroads on whether some of the crossings should be closed.