In light of Tuesday’s accident involving a moving train and semi, many people in the Stuart and Menlo communities are calling for safety issues at the railroad crossing on Talon Avenue to be addressed.

But the problem is, many are unsure of who is responsible for maintaining and implementing the necessary safety precautions at the crossing.

Jim Gibson is the Crossing Safety Program Manager for the Iowa Department of Transportation, and he tells Raccoon Valley Radio that installing railroad-at-grade crossing protection is up to “the highway authority with jurisdiction of the roadway over the crossing, in coordination with the operating railroad or whoever owns the rail.”

The Talon Ave crossing is outside of the incorporated area of Menlo, and Gibson says crossings outside of incorporated city limits are handled by the county roads department.

Our attempts to get in contact with the Guthrie County Roads Department and the Iowa Interstate Railroad company whose railcar collided with the semi have been unsuccessful at this time.

Raccoon Valley Radio will continue to follow this story and bring you updates as they become official.