Deeper Dive: Will Fort Wayne get more railroad underpasses and overpasses?

In January, the City of Fort Wayne announced a long-awaited $29M railroad overpass project coming to Airport Expressway. The project was made possible by a federal funding grant of $23.2M, as part of a $1.1 billion investment in 1,000 rail crossings nationwide, aimed at improving safety and quality of life, as well as reducing travel times – particularly for emergency vehicles. (An estimated 20% non-federal match will come from the city and Norfolk Southern to complete the project. Allen County also received $400K* to study a railroad overpass strategy for Scott Road.)

• Considering this: A reader asked: How is it decided which crossings get railroad grade separations (overpasses or underpasses), and is there a way for citizens to advocate for certain crossings to be addressed? 
• In particular: They wanted to know whether grade separations were planned for two crossings on Anthony Boulevard: One near Wayne Trace and another near the Maumee River. They said these crossings have trains blocking traffic "daily for hours, sometimes" and "affecting two hospitals." So has the city considered overpasses/underpasses there, and how much funding would it take?
• To answer: We spoke with City Engineer Patrick Zaharako in Public Works, as well as Dan Avery, Executive Director of the Northeast Indiana Regional Coordinating Council (NIRCC), which happens to be hosting an open house this week to review its Draft Fiscal Year 2026-2030 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) and corresponding Draft Air Quality Conformity Documents, as well as its 2045 Long Range Plan and Ped-Bike Plan.
• In fact: the 2045 Transportation Plan mentions the Anthony Boulevard crossing near Wayne Trace.

Here’s a quick summary of our conversation.

A reader asked: How is it decided where railroad overpasses/underpasses go, and has the city has considered overpasses/underpasses on Anthony Boulevard?

DA: There was a fairly extensive study done around 2017-2018 for a railroad grade separation at the crossing on Anthony near Wayne Trace. It’s actually listed in the  2045 Long Range Plan, but it’s not funded. These plans were carefully constrained to a list of projects we have enough revenue to fund projected over the next 20 years or so. But we also included additional projects we have a good justification for and would do if funding becomes available.

In fact, the railroad grade separation at Airport Expressway was also listed as an unfunded project in the  2045 Transportation Plan until recently, and now, it’s happening, thanks to a discretionary federal funding grant the city was awarded last year. The city also previously applied for a discretionary grant for the Anthony Boulevard grade separation near Wayne Trace, but they weren’t successful at securing that one. However, they did consider doing an underpass or an overpass there.

PZ: (As Dan mentioned,) we have looked at Anthony, and it is much more complicated because there is private development in close proximity to those tracks. To build an underpass or overpass, you’ve got to go about 1,000 feet in each direction to get over or under the railroad. So it virtually makes it impossible to build an overpass or underpass without severely affecting the businesses and homes in close proximity to that railroad crossing. Cost is a factor, too. Whereas the Airport Expressway overpass is under $30M, the Anthony overpasses would cost in excess of $50M each.

DA: One big reason we don’t do very many railroad grade separations is the sheer cost, generally upward of $25 million per crossing. Another thing we have to consider is which roads we would need to close or reroute in the area, and one of the Anthony crossings is also very close to the Maumee River, which brings up a whole host of other issues and makes doing an underpass very unlikely there. When you raise a bridge or roadway, noise becomes a factor, too, so there are a lot of neighborhood impacts to consider. 

The Airport Expressway project received a federal grant, which helped it come to fruition. How much money will Public Works contribute to that project? And what’s the status of federal funding for it and other local transportation projects now under the Trump administration?

PZ: For the Airport Expressway project, there’s a 20 percent match from the city and Norfolk Southern. We don’t have final numbers yet, and we’re still looking into other local funding sources beyond just our normal road funding for that match. Keep in mind, our total budget in Public Works is around $50M for capital improvement projects across the entire city, and that includes asphalt repaving and concrete street rebuilding, as well as work on bridges, sidewalks and trails.

DA: The status of federal funding for transportation projects, including the Airport Expressway grade separation, is currently on hold, due to changes under the Trump administration. Our biggest concern is regarding the discretionary grants that have been awarded to Fort Wayne, but not yet dispersed. The local area has collectively been awarded about $35-$36M in discretionary federal funding, but only about $5-$6M at this point has actually been dispersed. Everything is currently being reviewed by the federal government, and we’re awaiting further guidance from the Federal Highway Administration, but hopefully, there’s sufficient justification to move these projects through to construction.

PZ: There are a lot of unknowns at this time at the federal and state levels of government, but it’s a situation that we’re keeping a close eye on. We continue to have regular dialogue with federal and state officials. On the Railroad Crossing Elimination Grant Program – Airport Expressway Grade Separation – we’ve received notice of the grant award and are waiting on next steps.

If funding does become available, does Public Works or the NIRCC have other railroad overpass/underpass projects in mind that could happen?

DA: We’re considering a grade separation on Ryan Road, near Dawkins Road, east of New Haven. That’s in the  2045 Transportation Plan as an unfunded project, too. The railroad crossing there is extremely close to Dawkins Road, and we’ve had some crashes and a fair amount of truck traffic there. Essentially, when trucks are stopped and waiting to get out at Dawkins Road, their trailers can sometimes be blocking the crossing, creating a potential safety problem, so that’s another grade separation we’d like to do if the funding becomes available. 

PZ: At the City, we’re more focused on improving the existing at-grade crossings to make them safer versus building an overpass or underpass in most locations. It’s so disruptive to build an overpass and underpass that it’s just not viable in most locations. The Airport Expressway crossing was feasible for an overpass because we do not have any real private access property within 1,000 feet of the crossing.

If overpasses and underpasses aren’t a viable option in many locations, how else might the city address lengthy or stalled trains at railroad crossings blocking traffic?

PZ: We are looking at other technologies to give people better information, so if there is a train blocking a crossing, people can have prewarning of that, so they can choose other routes. Unfortunately, that’s about all we can do. We have no real power over how the railroads operate. All we can do is talk to them and plead and beg, to a degree.

DA: Thankfully, for the Anthony crossings, there are some alternative routes. They might not be ideal, but we also haven’t received any citizen complaints about daily blockages at those crossings so far at the NIRCC or the City.

How can citizens get more involved in transportation planning?

DA: Citizens can call or email the City’s Public Works department or the NIRCC. They can also attend this week’s Transportation Planning Open House on March 12, 4-6 p.m. at the Omni Room (Room #045) of Citizens Square to review the Draft FY 2026-2030 Transportation Improvement Program. It’s essentially an amendment to the Transportation Plan shared last year, where we’ve added the project for a railroad grade separation on Airport Expressway. The Draft Fiscal Year (FY) 2026-2030 Transportation Improvement Program overall includes transit, highway, pedestrian, and bicycle infrastructure improvements funded with federal funds and programmed for implementation between fiscal years 2026-2030 within Allen County. The NIRCC will also be hosting an online Open House for anyone who cannot attend in person and public comment is open until March 26. Project lists, along with maps, will be available for viewing online. In addition, the 2045 Long Range Plan and the Ped-Bike Plan will be available to view. You can view the materials on our website (www.NIRCC.com) or at the NIRCC office. Call (260) 449-7610 to schedule an appointment.