Amtrak Plans to Build Fence and Repair Train Bridges on Spruce & Pine Streets in Bristol

Merle Winslow, director of the Bristol Borough Emergency Management Agency, said last Sunday and repeated at Monday’s council meeting that Amtrak plans to begin restoration work on train bridges and install 8 feet high black iron fences starting with Spruce Street sometime in the fall.

Although an exact date for the work to begin is unknown, Winslow said he was told by Amtrak officials the undertaking could begin sometime within the next 90 days from the original date he was told of the work the second week of June.

“They sent the manager an E-mail and two Amtrak officials came out and what they are going to do is a fence in an area between Spruce and Pine St so they can house their materials there. Its going to be a project that’s ongoing since they don’t know exactly how much funding they are going to have for the work,” Winslow said.

Several attempts to reach Amtrak officials about the proposed work have gone unsuccessful as of press time.

Surveyors for Amtrak have already been out and marked property lines on Spruce and Pine, Winslow said.

Winslow said this would  be the third fence Amtrak has constructed in the borough, with each one being different from the last.

Each department does its own thing, he said at last weeks council meeting, but generally speaking he opined the fence they are planning to install now should have been the one erected in the past.

The issue of fences in around the elevated train tracks and at the Bristol  SEPTA station came under public scrutiny in late March and April when two “trespassers” were stuck and killed by trains.

One of the men killed, according to the Bucks County Coroner was a suicide.

Ease of access on to the tracks was one of the many issues brought to light, as the borough is no stranger to civilians being struck and killed by trains  in the past.

At the time of the last incident, Borough Council President Ralph DiGuiseppe, publicly questioned Amtrak’s commitment to safety for residents by pointing out that steps leading up  to the elevated tracks behind the ball fields on Jefferson Ave are easily accessible for anyone.

Although Amtrak,  as of today, won’t be installing fences at that location the fact they are going to do some work along the train line is progress as far as Winslow is concerned.