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ARLINGTON — The red lights began flashing Tuesday morning and the crossing gates lowered at Center Street in downtown Arlington, as a modern locomotive pulling a pair of 1950s dome cars and a sleeper car — all painted in the familiar Armour Yellow of the Union Pacific Railroad — rumbled to a stop.
For a few moments, Arlington officials got a peek at a Union Pacific "heritage fleet" that tours the country promoting railroad-crossing safety. They also got a feel for what it would be like to have commuter rail service downtown, something they may get — at least for a day — during the 2011 Super Bowl festivities."I’d like to take a trip on this," Mayor Robert Cluck said during the tour, admiring the nostalgic hunter green upholstery on one of the dome cars, "Challenger."But Cluck said that though he hopes the city and Union Pacific can announce a deal for commuter rail service on Super Bowl Sunday soon — perhaps within a few weeks — there is nothing imminent to report."It’s in the lawyers’ hands," he said. "I’m optimistic."If a deal can be worked out, the city hopes to create a platform and parking area downtown — perhaps just north of City Hall — and use buses to shuttle fans to Cowboys Stadium.The railroad’s Fort Worth spokesman, Clint Schelbitzki, said planners with the Super Bowl host committee had asked for trains that could carry up to 1,200 people at a time in six rail cars — most likely on cars borrowed from the nearby Trinity Railway Express — during 12 hours on Super Bowl Sunday.There are other issues to work out, Schelbitzki said, such as liability issues (who would be responsible for any injuries and accidents) among other things, that might occur on the heavily used freight line.Amtrak already runs daily through Dallas, Arlington and Fort Worth and has a liability agreement to use the Union Pacific tracks, so there are talks that perhaps the use of Amtrak cars on Super Bowl Sunday would be the least bureaucratically complicated way to go.But while those issues remain unresolved, members of Union Pacific’s Operation Lifesaver team were in town to promote safe crossings.Texas leads the nation in railroad-crossing deaths. About 42 people per year are killed in highway/rail crossing collisions, and about 51 people are killing trespassing on railroad rights of way, according to the Operation Lifesaver Web site.GORDON DICKSON, 817-390-7796
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