Which One is Different?

Take a look at these photographs, all taken along the same stretch of railroad, between Canyon Country and Acton, California. One of them is different from all the others. Can you tell which one is unlike all the rest?

Did you guess that photograph No. 3 is the different one? 

Yes! Photograph No. 3 shows a railroad crossing so dangerous that residents of the neighborhood it has served for almost a century are no longer allowed to cross there.

The others are okay.

I say this tongue in cheek. There has not been a single crossing accident at site No. 3 except for a woman on foot who tried to stop a freight train fifty years ago. You may have found it confusing that all the crossings are at-grade, and are regulated by stop signs. You may have been confused that one of the crossings boasts two tracks, or that some are paved and some are not; but the different one, the dangerous one, the one that fits with the unacknowledged schemes of our public officials, is ours.

        Did you notice that it is no more dangerous than the other crossings?

Actually, Federal studies of railroad crossings have found that the chance of an accident at crossings such as these is insignificant. The real crossing danger occurs at industrial sites.

In the process of "looking out for us," railroad officials created a barrier against our access to the world, which did not please us, but certainly pleased some other people who were simultaneously receiving a piece of land from Los Angeles County at our only other access point.

It will be interesting to discover just how our properties will enrich a bunch of people who don’t need to be any richer. We do not have a problem with them enriching themselves on the many hundreds of acres that have lain unoccupied for generations, but there is something about our living here, our being able to have legal access to the world, our being able to build on our own property, our being able to sell our property for what it is worth, that just gets under the skin of those acquisitive individuals.

The railroad, by the way, is intimately connected to Los Angeles County. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors sits on the Metrolink board as well.

But what do the railroad guys get out of this? What do the Supervisors get out of this? What sort of person can face himself and his family when he selectively isolates one neighborhood and lets the others go, just because that one neighborhood is vulnerable to the bullying of public officials? How does that happen, that an entire organization is silenced?

Meantime, other public officials and other powerful members of our larger community stand by, just like the teachers and administrators who stand by and permit bullying on the playgrounds and in the halls of their schools. If you hate bullying, here is a classic example. If you are not powerful enough to intervene you can at least express your disapproval by spreading the word about this blog and our issue. Many already have and we do thank you for your moral support and assistance.

Wouldn’t it be cool if just one big railroad official, just one, stood up and said “Wait, this is wrong, and I am not going to compromise my own ethics to enrich some other guy.”?

We need your help to reach that one person.

Who’s Been Workin’ on the Railroad?

In 2005 Metrolink closed our paved at-grade crossing that had been safely used for a century, and thus effectively choked off the small Briggs Road community from their only reasonable outlet to the world.

Who is Metrolink? Sitting on the Southern California Regional Rail Authority or SCRRA board is our very own Los Angeles County Supervisor, Michael D. Antonovich. Here is information provided on the Metrolink website:

"MTA Chairman and Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich represents Los Angeles County on the SCRRA Board of Directors. Antonovich also serves on the SCRRA Operational Oversight committee.

"Elected to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors in 1980, Supervisor Antonovich has served on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board of Directors, including a prior term as chairman from December 1994 to July 1995. Antonovich also is a current board member for the South Coast Air Quality Management District. A former member of the Los Angeles County Transportation Commission, he also served on the County Supervisors Association of California and was appointed to the U.S. Delegation to the United Nations International Conference."

This man is no dummy, and no weakling.

His deputy is Norm Hickling. Norm is working in our favor, so one might wonder how it is that he or Mr. Antonovich has been unable for eight years to reopen a railroad crossing. Granted there are complications, but can this simple kindness—to restore access to their homes for eleven families—really be that difficult for so competent a public official?

In a recent email, Mr. Hickling says about the railroad crossing: “These are the issue[s] I have been trying to address. The key in this particular case has been the railroad crossing[.]

Norm Hickling
Supervisor Antonovich Antelope Valley Field Office
1113 Ave M-4, Suite A
Palmdale, Ca 93551"

One of the younger residents replied:

"As I am understanding the flow of email going to and from you to us, the main issue you state seems to be the crossing of DOT 750878A, the crossing of Burke/Briggs Road and the SCAX (SCRRA) railway. It's described as a "Private At-Grade Crossing." I looked up our inventory list at safetydata.fra.dot.gov/OfficeOfSafety [Federal Railroad Administration - Office of Safety Analysis]. I am also attaching a copy just because it was hard to find and any documents we can provide for you I'm sure will be welcomed. On the same website you can also look up accident reports. I could understand being held to a different standard if our crossing had had some accidents or any incidents. Imagine my surprise when there was none! Since this does bring to light how the Briggs Road [community] seems to be being targeted by LA County or the SCRRA, I would like to know why. In a report, they state that there are 50 private at-grade crossings on the Antelope Valley to Los Angeles route alone! What is going on with those crossings? 

"The document containing that statement is outdated because the only documents describing SCRRA's position of at-grade crossings I could find from www.metrolinktrains.com is from October 11th, 1991. I will attach it as well.  However, also in that document it states that 'Upon the request of a county transportation commission, the Southern California Regional Rail Authority Board will consider exceptions on a case by case basis.' How can we proceed with this?

"Again, Norm, we appreciate that you are on our side and are glad that someone is fighting for us. I know that having an open dialogue is important to us and is also important to you being a public official and representing your community and not letting them be overrun and unfairly targeted. Our thanks is never-ending. In that light, please let me and everyone else know anything we can do to help you out in gathering information to make the right steps towards a resolution. We recognize that you are a very busy man and our little community is just one of other issues you are working to address and we would jump to do anything we can to further the progress of this issue and work with you on it. 

"Sincerely,

Julia Rhys

Resident of Briggs Road since 1988"

A case by case basis!

Whom is Norm Hickling attempting to persuade to restore our century-old right to passage? I’ll ask him and report back here.

Meantime, this is your opportunity to practice civic involvement. If we all sit back and watch instead of taking the simplest of actions, government can go against you too while you are not paying attention. Is California’s treatment of this small community okay with you? It’s easy to get involved and, if all you do is write a note or comment, it’s risk free!