The U.S. Supreme Court has invited the federal government to weigh in on whether state and local governments can regulate how long trains can block railroad crossings. The invitation means the high court might eventually give a full hearing to the appeal of a lower court ruling that invalidated Ohio’s blocked crossing law. There’s no guarantee the court will grant the appeal, but Monday’s court order keeps the door open for now. Countless people have died when emergency vehicles were delayed at rail crossings, The Kansas City Star reported in an investigation of railroad safety lapses. The high court refused to hear a similar case last year in which Oklahoma argued that lower courts were split over which federal agency has authority over blocked crossings and asked the justices for clarification. Over the past 20 years, lower courts have repeatedly ruled that state and local restrictions on train movements are preempted by the federal laws that govern the railroad industry. Some of those restrictions were passed recently in response to growing concerns that trains were blocking crossings more often and for longer periods. Other states, like Kansas, adopted their laws more than a century ago. While the courts have ruled that only the federal government can regulate train movements, the states note that Congress has failed to pass any laws limiting how long trains can block a crossing.
Source: KC Star Local News
