TARRANT COUNTY, Texas — There are several things Donail Williams will miss about living in this one-acre property in Vista Ranch. But there's one thing he won’t miss.
“The train! Even though they know that we just have one way out,” Williams said. “They know that because it's been too many calls. They have no discretion on when they stop and then how long they stop.”
The train track runs across Tinsley Lane which is the only road in and out for the dozens of homes in the community. And Williams says in the 19 years he’s lived there, he’s gotten stuck plenty.
“There's been times when they'll stop and they have some kind of problem, they'll stop at 2 to 4 hours and we've had as much as five hours,” Williams said.
His neighbors are tired of dealing with it, too.
“It's extremely frustrating whenever you've got kids in sports or you've got work or catch a plane or something like that,” said Ryan Starr. “You know, it's like being trapped in your own neighborhood.”
For years they’ve complained to Tarrant County about how the trains landlocked their neighborhood and the dangers.
“If you've got a medical emergency or a fire or anything like that, what do you do then? I mean, do you just let the house burn or do you let the person die?” Starr said.
The county promised to work on a solution and is now proposing building a new road that would run from Tinsley Lane to Peden Road, completely bypassing the tracks. They say they’ve already bought the land needed for the project and are eyeing breaking ground by the end of the year.
And although the changes come a little too late for Williams, they come just in time for others who have grown weary.
“I think it's sweet that it's gonna happen. I just wish it had happened 10,15 years ago,” Williams said.