NEW PARIS — Railroad tracks at the southern portion of Elkhart County are the first to go live with Blocked Crossings's new innovative software that helps drivers determine what routes may be most efficient based on which train crossings are open.
“We’re looking forward to using this more as we get used to it,” said New Paris Fire Chief Bill Dunlap. “It definitely can save us time because now our biggest issue is if (trains) stop here it could take us five to 10 minutes extra delay to get [to] a heart attack or a fire.”
A total of eight crossings in New Paris have been beta-testing the software for about a year now. The software uses a web-based system and camera to view whenever train crossing lights are flashing, indicating a blocked crossing, and send the information to www.blockedcrossings.com, where travelers can easily access it and determine a best alternative route.
“Communities are built around railroads and New Paris is no stranger to that, but you’ve got eight crossings here that are affecting first responders and those that live here," Elkhart County Commissioner Brad Rogers said. "So this is a big project and I think a big deal for people to be empowered."
In mid-November, the program went live and was made available to the public.
Crossings at U.S. 6, C.R. 50, C.R. 14, Market Street, C.R. 23, C.R. 142, C.R. 29 and C.R. 42 have been equipped. It’s from just north of the county line at U.S. 6 up to the south end of Goshen.
Glenn Gilbert, of Blocked Crossings LLC, based in Goshen, said around 100 trains pass through Elkhart County every day.
“This area is ripe for this kind of supervision,” he said. “We don’t think this community is unique in this way. There are many other communities in railroad corridors that might benefit from this technology, but at this point, there aren’t many options to monitor.”
The agreement to install and run the equipment cost the county around $60,000 for the initial project and will cost around $100 per month per crossing, totaling roughly $9,600 per year for maintenance. Starting in 2025 the New Paris Trustee will take over the $9,600 maintenance cost.
Dunlap said there are also hopes that in the future the website will be able to determine how long it will take until a train passes through an intersection as well to determine whether it’s faster to wait or find another route.
“One of the things we hope is that once we have some data points and some history, is that we might become predictive,” Gilbert said. “If we know it crossed U.S. 6 and a minute later it crossed C.R. 50, we should be able to predict when it’s going to reach New Paris and when it’s going to go beyond. Obviously there’s no guarantees that a train doesn’t accelerate or decelerate or stop altogether, but once we have data then it’s a matter of more programming, more planning, to become predictive.”
Rogers said trains have been parked in the area at times for over 24 hours.
“It’s very frustrating to the motoring public, to residents and to first responders,” Rogers said. “This is going to help in a great way. Dealing with the railroads is just not possible. They don’t want to hear you; they don’t want to work with the public and government. They have trains to run, which is a good thing — it’s good for our economy. But anytime they’ve got to stop trains for a variety of reasons — some of which we don’t necessarily understand. … We are tired of being held hostage by blocked crossings and this empowers us to do something about it.”
Rogers reiterated that while the website is available for drivers and passengers, the signs posted at crossings say drivers should stop to check crossings and they should not use devices while driving.
Resident of New Paris AJ Lane said he was a part of the beta testing of the software.
“It’s quite frustrating especially when (trains) slow down and stop,” Lane said. “And when they’re parked there for hours it’s a really big deal.”
Lane said for him, everything is on the wrong side of the tracks from his home, and he’s been stopped waiting for as long as a half-hour before.
“We have hopes that this idea will catch on,” Gilbert said, for emergency personnel and for the community as well.
Rogers said the county wants to ensure this program is working well before moving on to other crossings, although there may not be very many to address once the overpasses throughout the county are installed.
In Goshen, three sites are currently also undergoing beta testing but there are around 30 crossings in the city.
© 2025 Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc.