Things have gone off the tracks in Upper Chi

The people in Upper Chichester have had enough. For years they have dealt with issues that have a tendency to crop up when a train line runs through your town. No one has to tell Jim Finley about it. Along with his wife, Kathy Cardile, they’ve run Cardile’s Farmer’s Market on Meetinghouse Road for years, selling plants, flowers and vegetable on their five-acre piece of paradise. At least they’ve tried to, but increasingly that has been a dicey measure. And they blame the CSX train line that constantly disrupts traffic on the heavily traveled road.

You might say they needed to pave paradise, at least the piece that affects the Cardiles.

The last straw came a few weeks ago when CSX indicated it needed to resurface the railroad crossing on Meetinghouse, rerouting traffic over Chichester Avenue, I-95 and Route 452.

Jim Finley says he would routinely make $200 a day at the farm stand. That quickly dwindled to $5-$10 a day. He works as a truck driver during the day, 4 a.m. to 4 p.m., then comes home to work in the fields until 10 or 11.

It’s not easy work. It’s tough manual labor, but it has been part of his family’s life for years. Now that is increasingly endangered by the seemingly non-stop disruptions connected to the train line.

Finley says it’s not just this repaving project that is causing him concern. It’s the never-ending problems with trains that block the road, at times shutting it down for hours at a time. He’s

Tonight the township planning commission will take up the plans for the CSX expansion. No doubt Finley and Chichester residents will be on hand for offer their opinion. They’ve had enough.

been complaining about CSX operations for decades. He says the family is now mulling selling their home and closing up the farm market.

He’s tried the township. He’s reported it to township police when the train blocks the street for longer than five minutes, which is all the longer the train is supposed to be allowed to block traffic, with six exceptions when they can sit longer. Township officials are used to hearing from Finley, who has suggested the situation is creating not just headaches for him and his business, but a public safety issue, with fire trucks unable to get around the trains.

And he fears things are only going to get worse. CSX recently has acquired 40 acres adjacent to their property and word is that the company is looking to expand its auto depot operations in the township.

This week Finley was back where he has been several times, airing his complaints about CSX to township commissioners. He wasn’t alone. More than 150 people packed the meeting. They talked about safety issues, noise, the speed trains travel through the township, as well as environmental concerns and what all this might be doing to local property values.

Resident Michelle Lewis said she constantly worries about the black tanker cars, part of the oil trains that rumble through residential areas in the township.

Others spoke of being unable to open their windows because of the noise and the smell.

But for Joe Hemighaus, it was more personal. He lost his 22-year-old son in a train accident in 2006. He wonders about the speed the trains are traveling through the township.

It all sounded very familiar to former Darby Borough mayor Paula Brown. She also was in attendance at the meeting to support residents’ concerns. She told them of how she actually had to park her car on the tracks back in 2000 to get CSX’s attention.

Rodney Oglesby, a representative from CSX who attended the meeting, listened intently to the residents’ concerns. He vowed to take their message back to the company.

“Nothing you have said is going to fall on deaf ears,” Ogelsby told the crowd. “This is painful to hear and I can promise you that your concerns will be heard and we will do everything we can to rectify the problems.”

Board of Commissioners President Michael Gaudiosi suggested regular meetings between the township and CSX until the issues are resolved.

Finley has heard that before. Many times, in fact.

Tonight the township planning commission will take up the plans for the CSX expansion. No doubt Finley and Chichester residents will be on hand for offer their opinion.

They’ve had enough.