BOONE, Iowa—Boone City officials have said repeatedly that complaints about railroad crossings being blocked or crossings needing repair are more effective if the public submits the complaints to the proper agency. More often that not, people complain on social media or call the Boone County Communications Center or a city official. The City of Boone released this statement this week, once again reminding residents that the Federal Railroad Administration is a much better contact. This weeks prepared statement follows:

BOONE, Iowa—Citizens with complaints about continued train blockages of street crossings are reminded to log on to www.fra.dot.gov/blockedcrossings or call the federal blocked crossings toll-free number 1-800-848-8715.

“I understand that the frequency of complaints from the general public carries more weight with them than official complaints from the city,” Councilman Terry Moorman said. “If the blocked-crossing website and number receive even four or five complaints each month, the Federal Railroad Administration team will launch an investigation. That’s encouraging news, but it also means we genuinely need the public’s participation and help to address the issue.”

Moorman recently contacted U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst about challenges the City is having with UP, including crossing repair needs, the deteriorating viaduct as well as trains blocking intersections for long periods. He also met in June with a Federal Railroad Administration safety inspector, who visited Boone to see the infrastructure issues firsthand.

Moorman said anyone with safety concerns should visit https://railroads.dot.gov/railroad-safety to report those issue.