HAZLETON -- Inspectors checked out a railroad crossing in Hazleton Wednesday after a photo surfaced showing a school bus caught underneath a railroad gate
Some recommendations have already been made about the crossing and more might be coming.
People who live in Hazleton say the intersection of Church and Chestnut Streets where that railroad crossing sits is dangerous.
City and state officials are now looking into what can be done at the railroad crossing to keep drivers safe.
This busy railroad crossing in Hazleton is getting a safety check because two weeks ago a Hazleton Area school bus full of students got stuck at the intersection under one of the railroad crossing safety bars.
"Thank God nobody was hurt, that's the main thing."
Authorities say the bus driver did the right thing by staying put however it has officials questioning the visibility at the intersection on such a busy road.
"This is a main thoroughfare and this is a heavy populated area for buses, school buses and city buses," said Hazleton Public Transit official Ralph Sharp.
Officials from PennDOT, the Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission and the city of Hazleton met to discuss what should be done to make the railroad crossing safer. During that meeting, officials decided to make some slight changes to this intersection. One of those could possibly be taking down a fence for better visibility for drivers.
"We're going to move the landscaping. We're going to put some smaller stuff in, get rid of any kind of big trees that might be obstructing when the train does come through," explained Hazleton Department of Public Works official Frank Vito. "We're going to look at the fence, the fence may have to be lowered we're going to come back out and look at that."
"We're definitely not going to have any of kind of cars parked along the fence."
The city of Hazleton also plans to put up more loose stop bars and repaint some lines on the roads.
Residents say it needs more than just that. They hope for a crosswalk or even a stop light.
"This is dangerous. Something has to be done about this whole section," said Hazleton resident Mike Chunko.
There could be more changes after the PUC reports their findings back to Harrisburg, but for now the Hazleton Area School District tells Newswatch 16 it changed the bus route so it won't have to stop at Church and Chestnut Streets.
