NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) – A Norfolk man says he’s been given the runaround ever since he drove his car over damaged train tracks near the BAE shipyard last fall.

“I was riding across the train tracks, and I heard a loud boom,” said Billy Richardson.

“When I heard the boom, I pulled over, I stopped and looked under my car,” he said. “I noticed there was a piece snapped. When I went to drive, my car starts to slide on its side.”

When he took his Mercedes to the shop, he was told the damage will cost him around $7,000.

“It’s been very hard,” he said. “I’ve had to take buses, rent cars.”

Richardson first reached out to the city for help.

“They said they don’t own [the tracks],” Richardson said. “They had contacted Norfolk Southern (and) they said they don’t own it. Their hands are tied. So they gave it to the Norfolk City Attorney’s office. They said they were going to contact me in a couple of days. It’s been weeks now since that, too.”

A spokesperson for Norfolk told us Richardson submitted his claim for damage in March and that they’ve contacted Norfolk Southern to address the issue. While they reiterated that they don’t own or operate the tracks, they did recently repair them after learning of Richardson’s claim.

Norfolk Southern confirms to 10 On Your Side that they are researching the incident.

For now, Richardson remains hopeful.

“I just hope I can get it resolved,” he said, “(and I) can get my car fixed in a timely manner.”