LACKAWAXEN TOWNSHIP, PA — The rail tracks running through Lackawaxen Township have seen a surge of activity in recent months. Starting in February, trucks bearing stone from nearby quarries began pulling into the rail yard at the lower intersection of Route 590 and Scenic Drive, stirring concern for some residents. 

The rail yard is just a stone’s throw from the Roebling Bridge and the Delaware River, and the operator, Strategic Rail Solutions (SRS), has expressed the intention of being good neighbors to the community, and has put measures in place to reduce the dust and the noise created by its operations. However, the resurgence of active rail operations in a corner of Lackawaxen known for its scenic beauty has concerned local business owners who say their operations could be harmed by the railroad's presence. 

What is Strategic Rail Solutions?

SRS acts as a logistical go-between, getting stone from Lackawaxen's quarries to the rail cars that will haul it away but not controlling either end of the operation. "We're the loader," SRS CEO Steve Guido explained to the Lackawaxen Township Board of Supervisors. 

The rail yard in Lackawaxen has been in use since the 1860s, though it had more recently gone dormant. Under SRS's hand, it provides a new transportation option for local quarries, including Quarry Management; see sidebar for more information. 

Who does this affect?

The resumption of activity at the Lackawaxen rail yard has its neighbors casting a wary eye—and an open ear—over the site. 

One such neighbor, Troy Bystrom, runs a film office out of 101 Indian Lookout Road, just across Route 590 from the rail tracks and the rail yard, producing such shows as Wally Life. He told the Lackawaxen Township Board of Supervisors that filming at that location's studios could become impossible due to the noise from the rail yard's operations. 

"We understand the quarry; we understand the truck traffic; we understand the economic development," said Bystrom. "Those are all positives. But to do that activity right in downtown Lackawaxen, where people are coming to walk on the Roebling Bridge, visit the Zane Grey museum, put their kayaks in and float down the river—it's really just disruptive activity."

Residents have started a website, 'savelackawaxen.com,' to advocate against "the industrialization of a small historic Pennsylvania Delaware River town," according to the website. 

The website lists issues with the rail yard's operations, including the noise it has created, the health risks from the dust it raises and the financial impact it has on the community. 

SRS rail cars line up along the Lackawaxen rail yard.

What mitigation can be done?

Residents have petitioned the board of supervisors to intervene in dealing with their concerns over the railyard. SRS has "heard the concerns of the community, specifically regarding the dust and the noise that this operation is generating," McIntyre told the Lackawaxen Township Board of Supervisors. 

McIntyre said, "He and his workers are gonna do their best to reduce that impact and reduce the feel that the community has of it."

SRS has taken measures to reduce the noise and the dust coming out of the rail yard. The company has switched from a louder to a softer back-up beeper on its trucks, and has brought in a watering truck to spray down the site and reduce the spread of the dust. 

SRS plans to restrict its hours in consideration of neighboring businesses such as nearby hotels, said Guido. It plans to operate from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., and does not plan to operate on the weekends or on holidays. 

Guido says he already invested over $1.5 million in cleaning up the site and  told the board he plans to  include a six to eight foot tall line of shrubs along Route 590, as well as the digging of a well on the property.. 

The board and Guido discussed whether the rail yard could have its quarry trucks enter off of Route 590, rather than the on Scenic Drive as they do currently, to save the wear and tear on the township-owned road. Guido said that SRS is exploring that possibility.

What oversight is possible?

While SRS has expressed the intention to voluntarily mitigate its impact on the township, local municipalities have few options available to forcibly compel oversight. 

"We're not sure how much influence the township will have on that, because it's—from my understanding—controlled by the railroad," said board chair Jeff Shook. 

In a letter dated April 21, an attorney with the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railroad told the board of supervisors that the railroads fall "exclusively" under federal regulations.

The letter brings up another point—the rail yard is a pre-existing operation in the township, one that's re-emerging from a period of relative dormancy but one that's been active in Lackawaxen for over a hundred years. 

"The rail yard at Lackawaxen has been in continuous operation, although at varying levels of traffic, since the 1860s, when the branch line to Honesdale was constructed," reads the letter. "Rail yards throughout the country are used for a variety of purposes, including the loading and unloading of freight cars."

"I understand and Mr. Guido understands it's been inconvenient, and it's been, there's been some growing pains I think he plans to work through… [The operation] is aimed to benefit the community and accommodate neighbors and be a good neighbor," said McIntyre.