NACo endorses bill to allow states to regulate blocked rail crossings

Key Takeaways

On April 8, NACo endorsed the Railroad Responsibility Act of 2025 (H.R. 341). Led by Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio), this important legislation grants states the authority to regulate blocked at-grade railroad crossings. Delays caused by extended blocked train crossing create safety and connectivity concerns by increasing emergency response times and disrupting traffic.

Counties are responsible for maintaining safe and efficient transportation systems. Blocked crossings pose a major challenge to fulfilling this responsibility, and county governments are left with little recourse to address this issue due to the federal government’s almost exclusive power to regulate railroads. This bill would seek to address this issue by allowing states with the authority to set rules to prevent blocked crossings, bringing solutions closer to the county level.

Background

In response to concerns about the safety challenges posed by blocked at-grade crossings, the State of Ohio passed legislation prohibiting railroads from stopping trains in public crossings for more than five minutes. In 2022, CSX, one of the U.S.’s major “Class I” railroads, challenged the law in court, arguing that the State of Ohio does not have the authority to execute the law because the federal government preempts state authority on the issue of regulating rail crossings. The Ohio Supreme Court concurred with this opinion and found that federal law preempted the State of Ohio on the issue.

See the International Municipal Lawyers Association brief

What does the bill do?

The Railroad Responsibility Act of 2025 would end this preemption by amending title 49, United States code to clarify that “. . . this title does not preempt a State from the adoption or enactment of any law, regulation, order or other requirement related to limiting the duration that a railroad carrier may block a grade rail crossing.” This would allow states to enact and enforce legislation like that in Ohio to ensure the safe and efficient flow of traffic at railroad crossings. 

By allowing states to take an active role, the bill would bring enforcement closer to the county level and creates an additional pathway for county leaders to advocate for action to mitigate prolonged blockages.

The challenge for counties

According to data from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), only about 15 percent of highway-rail grade crossings in the United States are separated. This means that the track does not directly intersect with the roadway. Of the more than 200,000 crossings that are not separated, the majority of these are located along public roads, many of which are owned and maintained by counties. 

When railroads block these at-grade crossings for extended periods of time, traffic can back up for miles as motorists wait for the crossing to clear. These blockages create significant public safety risks when police, firefighters and other emergency responders are unable to reach the other side. This is an especially serious problem in rural counties, where there may not be easily accessible alternate routes.

Given the federal government’s near complete primacy over railroad regulation, counties—and even states—have very little recourse available to them to prevent railroads from blocking crossings, even ones located in high importance or highly trafficked areas. While the Railroad Responsibility Act of 2025 would not directly enable counties to enact and enforce blocked crossing rules, by granting that authority to states, it would bring enforcement one step closer to the local level and better equip counties to address these challenges. 

NACo endorses the Railroad Responsibility Act of 2025 and urges Congress to include the legislation in the next surface transportation reauthorization bill.