New crossing guards installed in BE
For safety at railroad crossings

A pedestrian goes through the new safety maze at the railroad crossing on North Main Street in Blue Earth.
No, they are not cattle gates or deer guards.
The new, small, fenced maze located on the sidewalk by the railroad crossing on North Main Street in Blue Earth is just something for pedestrian safety.
The miniature maze was installed a couple of weeks ago, but it is actually a part of the Safe Routes to School grant which the city received nearly two years ago.
That Safe Routes to School grant included funds for new paths and sidewalks in the city, among other items.
The new pathway from near Blue Ridge Apartments, which runs along Highway 16, continues onto Main Street.
The process for getting the Safe Routes to School grant began around 2020, with the plans being finalized in 2021.
“Most of the work on the project was done in 2021,” says Bolton and Menk engineer Ben Rosol. “And, under ideal conditions those pedestrian mazes should have been installed then, too, when the concrete was placed.”
However, Rosol continues, it took quite a while to get the railroad to sign off on the project and grant a permit. That happened late in 2022, and then it took a while to get it ordered and, finally, installed this fall.
Rosol added that there are still several signs for the pedestrian maze which are yet to be installed, but hopefully will be soon. They are alongside the maze, but when installed they will remind pedestrians to yield and to look for any trains coming down the tracks.
The idea of the maze, according to Rosol, is to slow pedestrians down, and move them both to the right and left to see if any trains are coming. That is just because they may or may not be paying attention as to whether the crossing gates are activated and about to come down to stop car traffic.
It is a safety thing. Not everyone pays attention to what is happening around them, when they are out walking. Especially these days with cellphones, ear pods and other distractions.
Dar Holmseth, a co-chair of the Blue Earth Active Living Coalition, agrees that it is a needed safety measure, adding it is a part of the Safe Routes to Schools Grant.
At the moment there are no plans to install any other pedestrian maze fences anywhere else in Blue Earth.