74-1318. Grade Crossing Protection Fund; department; administer; procedure; division of cost; responsibility for protection devices; powers and duties.

The department is hereby empowered to administer the funds deposited in the Grade Crossing Protection Fund as follows:

(1) If the department and the political subdivision with jurisdiction over the crossing agree that a grade crossing should be eliminated by closing the street, road, or highway, the political subdivision making such closing shall receive five thousand dollars from the fund and five thousand dollars from the railroad involved and the actual cost of closure not to exceed twelve thousand dollars from the fund. If pursuant to section 74-1305 it is agreed by the department and the political subdivision that such crossing should be eliminated by the removal of such rail line, the political subdivision paying for such removal, if any, shall receive two thousand dollars or the actual cost thereof not to exceed twelve thousand dollars from the fund;

(2) Except as otherwise provided in section 74-1315, in order to facilitate and protect the interest of the public as a whole and to compensate for the statewide use of such crossings by the public, the department shall pay ninety-five percent of the cost of overpasses, underpasses, and automatic railroad grade crossing protection measures or devices from the fund for all such projects in which an agreement among the department, the railroad, and the political subdivision is executed on or after May 24, 1979, and the balance of the cost shall be borne by the political subdivision, except that in any county in which a railroad transportation safety district has been formed, such balance shall be borne entirely by the political subdivision. For all such projects in which an agreement among the department, the railroad, and the political subdivision was executed prior to May 24, 1979, the costs shall continue to be borne in the same manner as they were prior to such date;

(3) It shall be the sole responsibility of the railroad company involved to maintain all automatic railroad grade crossing protection devices existing in this state;

(4) The department shall allocate the amount to be borne by the fund for the cost of construction, installation, or substantial modification or improvement of the automatic devices for the protection of the railroad grade crossing concerned under this section and section 74-1317; and

(5) The department shall enter into and enforce agreements involving the fund and the supervision of the construction, installation, substantial modification or improvement, and maintenance of such overpasses, underpasses, and automatic safety devices for which any part of the cost is borne from the fund and the auditing and collection of the bills covering the cost thereof. The department is further authorized to enter into such contracts with any railroad companies and political subdivisions affected which are necessary to carry out this section and section 74-1317.

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