Liberty Township is partnering with CSX on a railroad crossing upgrade at Jewett Road, with construction expected later in 2026, according to 1808Delaware.

The project follows the same model Powell used to overhaul two crossings in the past two years. No cost has been announced. Liberty Township has not publicly detailed the scope of the Jewett Road work or identified a specific construction date.

Powell, meanwhile, finished its $303,308 Seldom Seen Road crossing project the week of Aug. 3. CSX replaced the railroad tracks and ties, installed a rubberized crossing surface and resurfaced the roadway. The spending total also includes roughly $25,000 Powell spent in 2025 to install a rectangular rapid flashing beacon at the crossing, a pedestrian signal that uses rapidly flashing lights to alert drivers when someone enters the marked crosswalk near the tracks.

As we reported Aug. 12, the road closed for about five days starting Aug. 3 while CSX completed the work. Detours routed eastbound traffic along Sawmill Parkway and SR 750, and westbound traffic via North Liberty Street and Grace Drive.

Getting to that point took months of coordination. City Manager Andrew White told Powell City Council on June 2 that the city had already paid for the permanent track improvement and that materials were on site, but staff was still trying to pin down a schedule with CSX.

"CSX also did not have traffic control staff, so he organized for two City employees to help maintain traffic and also provided CSX with a backhoe to use," Public Service Director Charles Dukes told council at the same June 2 meeting, describing the city's hands-on role in getting interim pothole repairs done at the crossing.

Seldom Seen Road was Powell's second CSX crossing upgrade. The first, at the State Route 750 crossing, was completed in late 2024 at a cost of $267,327.

Next up for Powell is South Liberty Street. The city has committed $848,678 for that project, split between $98,678 already allocated for design and $750,000 for construction in the 2026 Capital Improvement Plan. Construction is tentatively set for 2027, and the project will include pedestrian safety improvements alongside the motorist upgrades.

Once South Liberty Street is done, every at-grade railroad crossing within Powell's city limits will have been upgraded. Combined with Liberty Township's Jewett Road project, the corridor faces a full modernization push spanning late 2024 through 2027.