Ohio's "Blocked Crossing Statute," Ohio Rev. Code
§5589.21, prohibits stopped trains from blocking public roads for longer than five minutes, with certain exceptions. No federal law addresses how long stopped
trains may block a grade crossing. But two acts of
Congress address when federal law preempts state
laws related to railroads. The first is the Interstate
Commerce Commission Termination Act. The Act
grants the Surface Transportation Board "exclusive"
jurisdiction over railroad "transportation." 49 U.S.C.
§10501(b). The second is the Federal Railroad Safety
Act, which expressly permits States to enforce laws
"related to railroad safety" until "the Secretary of
Transportation ... prescribes a regulation or issues an
order covering the subject matter of the State requirement." 49 U.S.C. §20106(a)(2).

This case presents two overlapping questions:

1. Does 49 U.S.C. §101501(b) preempt state laws
that regulate the amount of time a stopped train may
block a grade crossing?

2. Does 49 U.S.C. §20106(a)(2) save from preemption state laws that regulate the amount of time a
stopped train may block a grade crossing?

Does 49 U.S.C. §101501(b) preempt state laws that regulate the amount of time a stopped train may block a grade crossing?