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Oklahoma Official Says State Train Stop Law Likely to be Overturned

KWGS News File Photo

Zero, zip, zilch -- that’s how many citations have been enforced for stopped trains blocking crossings for 10 minutes or more in Oklahoma.

The law went into effect earlier this year but was tied up by a federal lawsuit filed in August by BNSF Railway Company.

An injunction filed in October blocks the Corporation Commission from processing any blocked crossing complaints until the lawsuit is resolved.

Corporation Commissioner Dana Murphy said she’s not optimistic the state will prevail.

"That case is still in process right now, but I just want to let you know, just from my own legal background, my thought is it’s likely to be overturned," Murphy said.

Murphy said railroads aren’t under Oklahoma’s jurisdiction.

"It’s a federally pre-empted issue, that the states do not have the ability to come in and dictate with what is already set up by federal law," Murphy said.

Oklahoma has more than 4,100 public, at-grade crossings.

Matt Trotter joined KWGS as a reporter in 2013. Before coming to Public Radio Tulsa, he was the investigative producer at KJRH. His freelance work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times and on MSNBC and CNN.