Two railroad crossings in Seymour will permanently close to traffic this fall.

At the request of the Louisville and Indiana Railroad Co., the city has officially agreed to close crossings at Seventh and South streets to traffic to improve public safety.

It brings the number of closed crossings in the city to three. The city closed the crossing at St. Louis and Indianapolis avenues in downtown Seymour in 2017. Other crossings that were under consideration for closure were those at Fifth and Bruce streets.

Both the city council and board of public works and safety have signed off on the most recent closures. The council gave final approval Aug. 20, and the board of public works gave its blessing three days later.

Mayor Craig Luedeman said the railroad company is needing the crossings closed because it is going to realign the railroad track so trains can move through the city faster and quieter.

That work should take place in September and will move the track 5 feet to the east to take the bend out of it, Luedeman said. Temporary road closings will be announced closer to the date of the work.

In return, the railroad company is giving the city $75,000, which it will use to build a pedestrian crossing allowing people to safely and legally walk over the railroad from Jeffersonville Avenue into the new Crossroads Community Park in downtown Seymour.

The closures also are eligible for funding through the state’s Local Trax matching grant program.

As part of the agreement, the railroad company also has said it will not contest the city’s plans to build a railroad overpass southeast of Silgan Plastics and just north of East County Road 340N, Luedeman said.

The overpass is part of an estimated $20 million project to build the Burkart South Bypass, connecting Tipton Street on the east side at Burkart Boulevard to Tipton Street on the west side at Airport Road.

Construction on that project is slated to begin in early 2020.