Slope to Northeast Ohio Rail Crossing Eased After Crash

Road crews are finishing work to create a more gradual slope leading up to a railroad crossing in northeast Ohio where a car crash killed four teenagers last year.

Young drivers were known to use the steep crossing in Columbia Station as a sort of ramp to go airborne in speeding vehicles.

An Ohio Department of Transportation spokeswoman tells The Plain Dealer in Cleveland that a $450,000 project has eased the approach to the crossing. It’s expected to re-open Thursday.

A car carrying Brunswick High School students went airborne, crashed and flipped at the crossing in June 2012. Two of the teens who died were scheduled to graduate later that day.

New caution signs were added near the crossing after the crash, and the recommended speed limit was lowered.