Three months ago Union Pacific Railroad representatives told Manteca Councilman Vince Hernandez they were interested in erecting a safety fence between their tracks and Moffat Boulevard.
This week they started delivering on their promise.
“I’m very happy,” Hernandez said of UP’s quick follow through.
The fence will parallel the Tidewater Bikeway and will run about a mile between Main Street and Spreckels Avenue. It is a decorative fence that will be difficult to cut through.
Hernandez, who worked with UP representatives along with city staff, noted UP is paying for the low-maintenance fence and installing it within their right-of-way in exchange for a commitment from Manteca to maintain it.
It is part of a system wide effort by Union Pacific to erect safety barriers in areas where young people tend to cross tracks illegally. In this case, the aim is to eliminate the possibility of teens going to and from Manteca High from the Woodward Park neighborhoods from taking shortcuts across the tracks.
Hernandez also noted that as the Tidewater gets more and more use it will enhance safety by preventing youngsters and others from wandering off onto the tracks.
The City of Manteca about eight years ago put its own low maintenance, high fence along the Union Pacific tracks from Center Street to the Walnut Place Park sound wall to prevent youth from cutting across the tracks to reach the skate park.
Hernandez said UP officials are open possibly to placing a similar fence along the tracks near Library Park in the future if they have funding available.
This week they started delivering on their promise.
“I’m very happy,” Hernandez said of UP’s quick follow through.
The fence will parallel the Tidewater Bikeway and will run about a mile between Main Street and Spreckels Avenue. It is a decorative fence that will be difficult to cut through.
Hernandez, who worked with UP representatives along with city staff, noted UP is paying for the low-maintenance fence and installing it within their right-of-way in exchange for a commitment from Manteca to maintain it.
It is part of a system wide effort by Union Pacific to erect safety barriers in areas where young people tend to cross tracks illegally. In this case, the aim is to eliminate the possibility of teens going to and from Manteca High from the Woodward Park neighborhoods from taking shortcuts across the tracks.
Hernandez also noted that as the Tidewater gets more and more use it will enhance safety by preventing youngsters and others from wandering off onto the tracks.
The City of Manteca about eight years ago put its own low maintenance, high fence along the Union Pacific tracks from Center Street to the Walnut Place Park sound wall to prevent youth from cutting across the tracks to reach the skate park.
Hernandez said UP officials are open possibly to placing a similar fence along the tracks near Library Park in the future if they have funding available.
