The Norfolk Southern Corporation has agreed to meet with local leaders after a private inspection revealed more than half of its railroad overpasses in Binghamton are in poor condition.

Concern over the condition of railroad overpasses in the city has long been shared by both drivers and city leaders, especially after the February derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. That attention reached federal officials, including Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirstin Gillibrand, too.

"It's really alarming. And after what happened in East Palestine, Ohio, people are rightfully concerned that the federal regulators and the companies themselves are not doing the amount of oversight and having accountability that needs to be done," said Gillibrand.

So why hasn’t the city taken action?

The simple answer: it’s not that easy.

Since the bridges are owned by private companies — mostly by Norfolk Southern — government agencies aren’t allowed to make repairs. That forced Binghamton Mayor Jared Kraham to fund a private inspection, generating more concerns.

The 900-page report revealed 15 — more than half — of the city’s overpasses are in “poor” or “severe” condition, and 12 of them have “significant structural and/or safety concerns.”

"I think it was a wake-up call for the railroads and the federal regulators that, you know, this is something that has to be looked at and we need to have a clear plan of action from the railroads on what they're going to do to fix these,” Kraham said.

Following that report, Schumer and Gillibrand joined Kraham in once again sending letters to Norfolk Southern, as well as the Federal Railroad Administration. Norfolk Southern has now agreed to meet with the city to address those concerns.

"I am encouraged,” Kraham said. “Ultimately my hope is that the railroads, you know, will do the right thing and do right by the residents of the city of Binghamton. And as we're looking to hold them accountable, you know, I'm confident that there's going to be some fixes that are coming," said Kraham.

The Federal Railroad Administration will also be conducting its own review.

The issue of crumbling infrastructure isn’t exclusive to Binghamton, and Kraham believes this attention could encourage companies like Norfolk Southern to take a closer look at overpasses in other cities across the state.

"By spending not that much money at the local level and getting this detailed report, we're going to be able to leverage millions and millions and millions of dollars in private investment in this infrastructure,” said Kraham.

Norfolk Southern responded with a previously provided statement:

"Norfolk Southern inspects its bridges per FRA guidelines, often exceeding minimum inspection requirements across our network. Whenever issues requiring attention are discovered, they are addressed. It’s important for the public to know there are many regulations and policies that ensure our infrastructure is properly maintained,” the statement reads.

The city of Binghamton hopes the company will continue working with them to address these concerns, and officials hope the work leads to a firm solution.

"I think it's essential that we work together on a bipartisan basis to fix problems that put our constituents lives in danger. We've had precedent of bridges failing and being inadequate in our own state. And so, we cannot have a deadly crash like they had in Ohio," said Gillibrand.