The number of trains passing through Sahuarita has quadrupled since December, increasing complaints from nearby residents concerned about noise and safety.
It also means that some railroad crossings will be blocked longer as slow-moving trains pass through and sometimes stop.
Concern over the problem has been growing as the number of north- and southbound trains traveling on Union Pacific Railroad's Nogales branch line has increased since December from two a day to an average of eight per day, residents and officials said.
The number of trains has risen mainly because of an increase in output at a Ford automobile plant in Hermosillo, Sonora, said Al Altuna, a railroad expert with Puerto Nuevo, which oversees operation of a railroad-based transportation hub in Tucson.
The amount of train traffic on the Nogales branch line — also referred to as the Nogales spur — will continue to grow along with U.S.-Mexican trade, Altuna said.
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The problem is aggravated by ever-increasing vehicle traffic in the rapidly growing Sahuarita area.
That's especially a concern for residents of Quail Creek, the age-restricted master-planned community in southern Sahuarita where many elderly residents live.
"If you're going to have a heart attack, you might as well have someone dig a hole for you, because they're never going to get there in time," said George Hemminger, one of about 130 people who showed up at a public meeting in Quail Creek last week to talk about the issue.
It hasn't gotten quite that bad yet, said Simon Davis, chief of the Green Valley Fire District, which provides fire protection for the southern portion of Sahuarita, including Quail Creek. From Jan. 1 through March 31, trains have blocked emergency vehicles' access into Quail Creek three times, extending their response time by an average of five minutes, said Davis, who sat in on the April 26 meeting.
But it could become a problem as the area continues to grow, he said.
"It's a cause for concern in that there's obviously some serious development on the east side of the tracks," he said Friday.
Sahuarita Town Manager Jim Stahle said Davis and town officials have worked out an agreement with Union Pacific to open up an alternate route for emergency access into Quail Creek — Martin Road, about three-fourths of a mile south of Quail Creek Crossing Boulevard, the main entrance into the community.
Town staffers are working on at least two other alternate routes into the area, Stahle said Friday.
"We've been working on this for years, for the very reason that these folks are concerned," he said.
Some residents, like Dick Walden, are concerned more about the safety of the rail line than problems with crossings.
Walden, a longtime resident and president of Farmers Investment Co., said he believes the pounding from increased train traffic will make the old line fall apart more quickly, increasing the chance of a derailment.
He has lived through it before — most recently in January 2001, when a defective rail made a 107-car train jump the tracks running through his pecan orchards about 1 1/2 miles south of Sahuarita Road, according to data provided by the Arizona Corporation Commission, which oversees railroad operations in the state.
The wreck toppled 19 cars, including six tank cars, three of which broke open and spilled 10,000 gallons of sulfuric acid. About 100 area residents were evacuated overnight. One firefighter was treated for inhaling the fumes.
"That made me aware of the problem with those tracks," Walden said. "I've watched them as the trains go by, and those 100-ton cars can make the rails move up and down by an inch or two."
That's probably why many of the spikes that hold the rails onto the wooden ties have been pulled up an inch or two from the ties, he said.
"As we get more people into this area, UP is going to have to do more maintenance," he added.
Mark Davis, a Union Pacific spokesman, said the company plans to do maintenance next year on the Nogales branch line, including replacement of ties and resurfacing the roadway at crossings.
As for other complaints raised by residents of Sahuarita and other communities down the line — including loud train horns and decreased property values — Davis said UP sympathizes, but must operate its business on rail lines that existed long before most residents moved into areas around the rail line.
"Often, residents of those communities are not accustomed to railroad operations," he said.
Altuna said the Nogales branch line was built in the 1880s.
Davis encouraged area residents to apply for a "quiet zone" designation that would limit the number of times that engineers can blast the locomotives' horns as they approach crossings, among other areas.
Brian Lehman, an Arizona Corporation Commission railroad safety supervisor who attended last week's meeting, also encouraged residents to seek a quiet zone.
He also urged residents to document times when train horns blast excessively, and other problems, such as trains stopping at crossings for more than 10 minutes.
The Corporation Commission's railroad-safety-section staff is small and depends on reports from residents about problems, Lehman said.
He said the staff was not aware that trains were blocking crossings until area residents reported it — and neither were Union Pacific officials in Tucson, until he and others in the railroad-safety section told them about it last week.
Lehman said residents' reports should include as much precise information as possible.
"Photos are excellent documentation," he said.
Train accidents on UP's Nogales Branch line, 2001-2005
Collisions
April 18, 2005 — Pima Mine Road crossing — train struck gravel truck. No injury or fatality reported.
Derailments
Jan. 2, 2001 — 1.5 miles south of Sahuarita — derailment caused 10,000-gallon spill of sulfuric acid.
Sept. 26, 2001 — Two locomotives and two boxcars derailed near Nogales because of a defective switch. No hazardous material spills.
Dec. 24, 2002 — Two locomotives and 16 cars derailed near Tubac because of a broken rail. No hazardous material spills.
March 22, 2004 — Two rail cars derailed while train was leaving Nogales Yard because train cars were not properly assembled.
Hazardous material incidents
Sept. 4, 2005 — UP employee discovered sulfuric acid leaking from tank in Rio Rico. Arizona Corporation Commission staff issued citation for violation of federal regulations.
Oct. 4, 2005 — UP employee found sulfuric acid leaking from tank car at Rio Rico. Arizona Corporation Commission staff issued citation for violation of federal regulations.
Source: Arizona Corporation Commission
