SAN ANTONIO — Trouble on the tracks. Drivers say a northeast side railroad crossing is a menace. They say trains stop on the tracks, for nearly a half hour, on Rittiman Road near Gibbs Sprawl Road.
On Monday, KENS 5 cameras caught one train, at the peak of rush hour, parked for 25 minutes on the tracks.
Jessica Wagner travels in the area daily.
"Road rage," she said. "And it is not towards the cars, it is towards the train."
Right before rush hour Monday, the train took about 25 minutes to move. Matthew Manning said this is common for commuters.
"The people have been saying this crossing has been a major burden on them, their family, their work, their life, their commute, the emergency services," he said.
Manning said the train will block this railroad crossing several times a day. Drivers said it is impacting public transportation and even more importantly first responders.
"Trying to get emergency response," Wagner said. "Don't even bother. You might as well just let them die. They are not going to make it to you in time."
Wagner is one of more than 2,000 people who have signed an online petition.
"It said people are really concerned about this railroad crossing," Manning said.
Manning started the petition demanding change.
"Maybe this isn't exactly a Union Pacific problem, or a city of San Antonio, or a city of Kirby or Bexar County problem," he said. "But, this has got to be unified effort, it needs to be in order to get it done."
A Union Pacific spokesperson told KENS 5 the company is aware of the concerns. She said they operate on customer schedules, which is hard to change. The spokesperson said they're in contact with the city on a regular basis. She said a long-term solution is the area needs an overpass, which will help with traffic.
KENS 5 also reached out to District Two Councilwoman Jade Andrews-Sullivan, we are still waiting on a response.