JAY — Pan Am Railways will fix the railroad crossing on Crash Road, near the intersection of Riley Road, next week, company Executive Vice President Cynthia Scarano said Wednesday.

Jay and Maine Department of Transportation authorities have fielded more than 15 complaints about the crossing in the last month, Jay Town Manager Ruth Cushman said. Cushman and the DOT sent a joint letter to Pan Am on Oct. 11 asking that the crossing be repaired properly.

The letter followed several unanswered emails and telephone calls to the company, according to the letter.

Cushman and the DOT said the crossing was “a very serious safety issue that is causing a great deal of damage to peoples’ vehicles and could possibly cause bodily injury, also.”

They referred to it as being in very poor condition.

Cushman wrote that a few months ago there was some patch placed there but the area is so bad now that she had reports of several blown tires and damaged rims.

Potholes had formed in the crossing making it a rough ride for motorists.

She wrote that both entities were receiving complaints daily.

“Some of the holes by the track are over ankle deep and in order to cross you need to creep,” the letter states.

Pan Am did some repairs in early October but they didn’t hold up.

Pan Am owns the railroad crossing and the state road crosses through the company’s right of way, DOT Region 3 Manager Norman Haggan said.

Pan Am plans to work with the Maine Department of Transportation to make the repairs, Scarano said.

Pan Am is going to raise the grade a little bit so it would drain better, Haggan said. “They’ll raise the rails and DOT will match the road up to it,” he said.

In order to do that Crash Road will be closed at the crossing on Oct. 26 and Oct. 27. Signs will be posted suggesting alternate routes of Route 140 and Route 133 without increasing the traffic on the Route 4 road project, he said.

“We know it’s not an ideal situation but we need to get it done this fall so there are no potholes in the winter,” Haggan said. “Our goal is to have a smooth crossing and smooth pavement.”

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