County to use tank cars as culverts

As numerous tank railcars have ridden along the tracks in Union County over the years, county supervisors will put some of those railcars to another use.

During the Union County Board of Supervisors meeting Monday, supervisors approved the purchase of a railroad tanker car that will be retrofitted to work as a culvert on Redwood Avenue south of Afton in Sand Creek Township.

“We already got a tanker car purchased. There are two bridges on that road. The north one is 6 ton. The south one is 12. I’m sure it’s on the hit list this fall to go to six,” said Al Hysell from secondary roads about bridge weight limits. “We might as well hit them while we are there. Two more bridges will be gone.”

Prepared by The Railroad Yard, the company takes unused tanker railroad cars and converts them to cuulverts. Hysell said the first culvert measures about 9 feet in width and 75 feet in length. That was ordered earlier this summer.

The second culvert from a tanker car, addressed Monday, will measure about 10 feet by 65 feet. That one is intended to replace the bridge further south and expected to be delivered in a couple of months.

“They do take a while to fabricate,” he said.

The tanker car approved Monday was priced at $22,500. Hysell estimated the material alone for a 65-feet bridge would cost $75,000.

Hysell said the thickness of the steel is about three-fourths of an inch, which was probably a pressurized tank car, according to The Railroad Yard.

“It will take hundreds of years to rust one out,” he said.

Hysell said the culverts are delivered to job site since the county does not have the capability to transport.

“We don’t have the equipment. We can roll them around, scoot them around. A crane would have to pick it up,” he said.

The county’s longest trailer still isn’t long enough to hold one.

Hysell said there are others in Union County who are capable of transporting one should the county want to contract with those people.

“The less we have to handle them, the better,” he said.

Hysell said the tanker-car culverts can be set in place in two or three days, depending upon conditions. He expects to use more in the future.

“We got a pretty extensive hit list sometime early this year,” he said. “See if we can find tanker cars for it. That’s the way to go. We know which bridges are getting in the ballpark to be replaced. If we come across a cheap one, buy one lie it in a ditch.”

Hysell said he would like to have a few county employees intended for bridge replacement work, up to four a year, as long as the budget allows. He said two people could do the work although it would require use one of the county’s backhoes.

“We’re still aways out on it,” he said about that strategy. “We know which bridges are getting in the ballpark to be replaced. If we come across a cheap one (tanker car), buy one, lie it in a ditch.” If we can get rid of a lot of these bridges, get them off the inspection list by putting a pipe in it’s by the far the cheapest way to go.”

In other supervisor news...

Supervisors tabled a discussion with engineer Keith Wieland about BNSF’s proposal to replace a bridge on Redwood Avenue east of Afton and south of U.S. Highway 34. Wieland was not able to attend Monday’s meeting.

Supervisors also tabled a discussion about vacating a portion of Ringgold-Union County road.

Supervisor Rick Friday said a resident asked about the county installing a speed limit sign on REA Road leading into Lorimor. Al Hysell from secondary roads department said the proposal would need action by the city of Lorimor and the county.