One way in, one way out: Iyanbito meets with FRA reps on potential new bridge, accessways
Navajo Times | Boderra Joe
A sign reads ‘GPS Wrong’ while a train passes in the background during a tour led by Iyanbito Chapter officials when Federal Railway Administration representatives visited on June 3. This access point is monitored and owned by BNSF Railway and is off-limits to the public.
IYANBITO, N.M. – Members of the Iyanbito Chapter and community met with representatives of the Federal Railroad Administration on Monday to provide a first-hand account of what the community faces daily regarding the route that leads to and from their community.
Navajo Times | Boderra Joe
A sign reads ‘GPS Wrong’ while a train passes in the background during a tour led by Iyanbito Chapter officials when Federal Railway Administration representatives visited on June 3. This access point is monitored and owned by BNSF Railway and is off-limits to the public.
It is hoped that this meeting will develop, agree to, and finally implement a viable solution to the community’s long-standing road issues. A partnership for a potential new bridge could possibly be developed.
Several chapter officials and community members told the FRA representatives that for decades now, they have been forced to travel on a lone two-way road and across a dangerous one-lane bridge to reach their community and homes. This route is the only way that they can travel in and out of their community.
In addition, a significant railroad track cuts directly through this lone road, and trains travel this busy route with constant delays. Travelers are forced to wait until the trains cross, and sometimes, that takes several hours because of issues that the railway company is dealing with. During adverse weather, this route becomes more dangerous.
“This is a perfect opportunity,” said Santiago Cruz-Roveda, the Office Regional Outreach and Project Delivery supervisor with FRA. He was joined by colleague Jennifer Stewart, FRA’s first tribal liaison.
Navajo Times | Boderra Joe
Right, Eugene Marshall, the facility maintenance specialist at Iyanbito Chapter, explains to Jennifer Stewart, the tribal liaison with the Federal Railway Administration, who is standing next to him, about the constant flooding that happens when washes become clogged due to the small underpass tunnels for water to run-through in Iyanbito, N.M.
“It’s really kind of a testament to this administration’s commitment to working with tribal government,” Stewart said to the chapter officials. “To better understand what your needs are and what your vision is for your communities and help you achieve those goals.”
According to the U.S. DOT, Cruz-Roveda explained that the U.S. Department of Transportation announced its Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that provides $350 billion for federal highway programs over five years between fiscal years 2022 and 2026.
The BIL would provide funding through various grant programs, which Cruz-Roveda believes Iyanbito could utilize for its new bridge project.\
Additionally, Stewart said this would allow FRA to identify synergies between what the FRA could do and figure out the involvement of the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, which has a Memorandum of Understanding, with the Navajo Nation.
“Both of these projects are related,” Stewart said about the rail line and the bridge and the flooding and erosion in the area.
The FRA wanted to see first-hand the situation that the Iyanbito community deals with daily and then determine what actions need to be taken.
Read the full story in the June 6, edition of the Navajo Times.
Highway 264,
I-40, WB @ Winslow