While Norfolk Southern and MDOT continue to negotiate, Dearborn officials say construction will soon begin on the train station.

Dearbornites tired of passing weed-covered piles of dirt at the site of what is supposed to be the city’s future intermodal train station on Michigan Avenue may soon get some reprieve.

While the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) and Norfolk Southern continue to negotiate to resolve several key issues, including right of way, train platform heights and purchase price for track, Dearborn officials tell DeepsaidWhat.com that construction on the actual train station at the southern portion of the property could begin shortly after Labor Day. Norfolk Southern apparently gave the city the green light to begin station construction.

We’ve received dozens of notes from readers asking what was going on with the construction project on Michigan Avenue, just east of Brady on the south side of the street. The piles of dirt in the parking lot of what will soon be the new location for the train station have been sitting for so long that weeds now blanket the dirt mounds.

MDOT and Norfolk Southern have not yet reached agreement on platform heights for the new station, which is a major hurdle since the single track will need to be used by both passenger and freight trains, each with different load heights.

Norfolk Southern also wants to install a second track sometime in the future. Just a single line exists today.

In addition, MDOT and Norfolk Southern still are negotiating on the price for the track from Dearborn to Detroit. The state has already purchased the property to Kalamazoo so it can construct a new high speed rail system but needs to purchase this final section of property.

No one said this project was going to be easy but the sliver of good news is that real work might soon get underway.