The Norfolk Southern Railroad will close Porter Road between Old Porter Road and Route 72/Wrangle Hill Road in Bear for the installation of a new railroad crossing and repairs to an existing railroad crossing.
The repairs are related to making efficient use of train loads of tank cars that serve the Delaware City Refinery on a line that runs from the Newark area.
The refinery is receiving a growing percentage of oil from North Dakota and Canada. The oil is transported by rail, due to a lack of pipeline capacity in that region. PBF continues to expand its railroad crude oil unloading facility near the refinery and projects the heavy use of rail traffic could go on for years.
The added number of trains has raised concerns from residents living near the once quiet line in Bear as well as fire companies worried about blocked crossings during emergency situations.
The armada of tanks cars have been seen filling up the Newark yard of Norfolk Southern, which had been quiet after the closing of the nearby Chrysler plant. The tank cars are then moved to the refinery.
The road closure will occur at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, March 26, and is scheduled to reopen by 9 p.m. on Sunday, April 7, depending on weather.
