Factual Background

The parties do not dispute most facts concerning the Summit Truck Trail and crossing and their use by emergency response vehicles and the public generally.

The Summit Truck Trail, also referred to as Post Office Road, is a dirt road that has existed for approximately 100 years. It runs between Jenny Street at Highway 15 and State Route 138, and traverses the Oak Hills development where complainants reside. Most of the Summit Truck Trail is part of the Zone B Oak Hills Transportation Facilities Plan (Plan), adopted by the County of San Bernardino in 1989. Improvements to the Summit Truck Trail within the Plan boundaries were scheduled for early in the Plan, and fees are being collected for that purpose. Decker Road is the southern boundary of the Plan. One complainant's home (Jones) is one-half mile south of Decker Road and is the most southerly residence in Oak Hills. His home is approximately one-half mile north of the crossing. The portion of the Summit Truck Trail below Decker Road that crosses BNSF's tracks is not part of the Plan and the County does not maintain that portion.

The public has used the Summit Truck Trail regularly since at least 1934. Property north of the tracks includes private property, Bureau of Land Management lands, and utilities' property. Complainants' properties are not adjacent to or bisected by BNSF's right of way. Oak Hills has approximately 6,800 residents.

The crossing at issue is where the Summit Truck Trail crosses the BNSF right of way and tracks at Mile Post 55.82. BNSF relocated its tracks to that site 30 years ago after obtaining the parcel across the trail. The crossing which resulted from the relocation of the tracks was intended to be used by railroad maintenance crews, as well as Forest Service and Edison Power Company maintenance crews, and was considered by BNSF to be a private crossing. BNSF brought in fill dirt to bring the Summit Truck Trail up to the grade of the rail line being placed so that vehicles could pass over the tracks.

There has been one fatality at the crossing. In the latter part of 1994, BNSF decided to close the crossing to prevent public access. BNSF contacted the County, which confirmed that the Summit Truck Trail was not in the County Maintained Road System but declined to consent to the closure because the road might provide access to property above or north of the tracks.

Commission staff recommended that the crossing be closed in a May 8, 1995 letter. Factors noted in that letter include train speeds of 55 and 50 MPH, the presence of two operating main line tracks, the roadway geometrics and view obstructions, and the daily maximum of 56 freight and 2 Amtrak trains. (In 2001, these numbers had increased to 75 freight and 4 Amtrak trains per day.)

The crossing was closed on or about November 1, 2000. After the crossing was closed, BNSF met with Commission staff to address allegations that property owners affected by the closure had no alternate access routes available to them. Alternate routes available are two roadway main entrances to the Oak Hill properties provided from the north side of the subdivision from Mariposa Road.

At the time of the closure, passive warning devices consisting of stop signs protected the crossing. Private crossing signs in accordance with General Order 75-C are placed near the crossing. Commission records do not list the Summit Truck Trail as a public crossing.

The Summit Truck Trail and crossing is used by Station 48 of the County Consolidated Fire Department to provide emergency response to the Oak Hills community. There is no other easily traversed crossing that emergency response can use. The community also uses the road for personal and business purposes. Some residents have mailboxes near the intersection of the Summit Truck Trail and Highway 138. In storms the northern portion of the Summit Truck Trail is impassable for an hour or two. The southern portion of the Summit Truck Trail is not impassable.

Station 40, which is located north of the BNSF crossing, provides primary emergency response to complainants' properties. Station 48 is closer to the southern portion of the Oak Hills property. Station 40 responds to Oak Hills 20-25 times a year by itself. Station 48 responds to Oak Hills 30-40 times each year and historically has been able to beat Station 40 into the southern area of Oak Hills. There are no alternate routes for Station 48's emergency response to Oak Hills that add less than 30 minutes to the response time. When the barricades were in place and the chain lock needed to be unlocked, a delay of 3 to 7 minutes occurred. On one occasion the lock froze. After BNSF permitted the Fire Department to page a security guard who unlocked the barricade before the emergency vehicle's arrival, there was no delay in response time. The Fire Department paged the security guard, and the guard opened the lock and swung open the barricade so the units could go through without delay.

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