PITTSFIELD – The Webb Road railroad crossing will be the site of an intensive overhaul this week and will be closed Wednesday, according to town officials. Guilford Rail Systems crews will be on site at 7 a.m. in order to complete the renovations in a single day.

Town Manager Kathryn Ruth said Crawford Road could be used as a detour during the closure.

Ruth said she and public works foreman John Dickson met with Guilford Rail representatives at the beginning of the month regarding two town crossings, the Webb Road location and the Detroit Avenue (Route 69) crossing.

“Guilford has offered to partner with the town to rebuild the intersection as it is so bumpy and the rails need replacing,” Ruth said Monday. “The railroad company has offered to build the trunk panel, excavate the area, furnish the rubber and provide the flaggers for the project. Guilford also indicated that they would provide the conduit for the future [installation of signals] by [the Department of Transportation]. The town was asked to provide the pavement for the project, which we agreed to do.”

Ruth said the pavement would be put down at the end of the month. “The town has waited many years to have this intersection revamped,” she said.

“While we had the railroad experts here in town, we also looked at the Detroit Avenue crossing,” Ruth said.

“People have noted that the crossing has been in its current condition for approximately 20 years. When the town reviewed the crossing with Guilford, the company would like to fix the railing next year as they would plan on doing one major project each year.”

Ruth said it was determined that most of the uneven surface at the Detroit crossing stems from the many layers of pavement that have been laid on the road over the years.

“If several humps were cut as maintenance work, this would be a short-term solution to an extremely bumpy ride that has loosened parts of trucks and ended up with a blocked railroad crossing recently due to a mobile home coming apart that was being hauled over it,” Ruth said. “MDOT will be asked to perform that maintenance work as the state is responsible for Detroit Avenue.”

Anyone with questions about either project can contact Guilford Rail Systems at (800) 955-8134 or the town office at 487-3136.