Scioto Peninsula Raised Railroad Tracks

[SteveKZ087]

With the forthcoming Veterans Memorial, etc. projects on the Peninsula, coupled with the anticipated growth of the Franklinton area, my attention has recently turned to the raised railroad tracks that cross Broad St on the Peninsula.

To me, the railroad tracks present a barrier cutting off Franklinton from downtown. The tracks eliminate sightlines and contribute to Franklinton feeling cut off.

In order for Franklinton to have the connected, complimentary, walkable access from downtown that we want to see, it would seem to me that the tracks need reimagined. At a minimum the tracks need to be re-faced, painted, and the underpass brightened up. In a dream world I’d love to see the tracks structurally changed to bring a more open feel to the area.

Have any conversations about those tracks taken place? I haven’t heard a word, and it seems like something that should be happening concurrently with the rest of the work on the Peninsula.

[Walker Evans]

There’s gateway features planned for Rich and Town:

New Gateway Concepts Shared for Town and Rich Streets in Franklinton

But I haven’t heard anything about Broad.

I think the biggest issue is that the railroad tracks are privately owned by the railroad companies, so it’s not an easy public infrastructure fix from the city or county or state.

[Rockmastermike]

Walker said:
I think the biggest issue is that the railroad tracks are privately owned by the railroad companies, so it’s not an easy public infrastructure fix from the city or county or state.

There are also certain engineering realities that are difficult to work around. Anything that looks nice also has to be able to carry one hell of a massive load of freight train. Not saying it can’t be done, but its a little more challenging than, say, a freeway overpass. Which, of course, means more expense likely for both the railroad and the city if they’re even willing to partner up on it.

Guess I’m saying yeah it’d be nice but I wouldn’t hold my breath.

[SteveKZ087]

Rockmastermike said:
Not saying it can’t be done, but its a little more challenging than, say, a freeway overpass. Which, of course, means more expense likely for both the railroad and the city if they’re even willing to partner up on it.

Yeah, hence my “dream world” scenario, versus what I think will actually happen.

Walker said:
I think the biggest issue is that the railroad tracks are privately owned by the railroad companies…

I figured that was probably the case as well. I wonder if the Franklinton Area Commission would be willing to partner with them to see what kind of “sprucing-up” would be possible or realistic. There are dark and dank train underpasses in places like Pittsburgh that have been lit extremely well and transformed into mural space for local artists. Something like that would definitely work here, and would not be incredibly cost-intensive. (Compared to structural changes, anyway.)

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