Three Georgia counties – including two in metro Atlanta – will receive more than $3.2 million in federal funds for projects aimed at eliminating crashes and blockages at railroad crossings.

One project in DeKalb County is just down the street from the City of Atlanta’s controversial new public safety training center project.

The funding is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Railroad Crossing Elimination Grant Program, which is providing more than $570 million for 63 projects in 32 states in this first of four years of annual grants. The program is part of the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

The dangers of intersections of roads and railroad tracks have been highlighted in national media stories in recent months. Train collisions with motor vehicles are one danger. Another is lengthy road blockages by stopped trains, which can prevent first responders from helping people in emergencies, among other impacts.

Earlier this year in Hogansville, Ga., located in in Troup County, a train blocked intersections for six straight days, according to a WSB-TV report. According to DOT, there were more than 2,000 highway-rail crossing collisions in the U.S. last year and more than 30,000 reports of train-blocked crossings submitted through the Federal Railroad Administration’s online complaint portal.

The Georgia projects funded this year include:

DeKalb County: $460,460 to begin development of a grade separation of Norfolk Southern’s railroad tracks at Constitution Road, which DOT says is blocked approximately 45 times a day. It also happens to be near the site of the public safety training center project and about 1,000 feet from one of its driveways. The County will provide a 20 percent match for the grant.

Gwinnett County: $888,000 for a feasibility study of construction alternatives for three CSX railroad crossings. The County will provide a 20 percent match for the grant.

Chatham County:…