(The following article by Kate Garsombke was distributed by Central Wisconsin Sunday on May 2.)
WISCONSIN RAPIDS, Wisc. — Some central Wisconsin communities that have gotten used to the quiet crossings of trains in the night could be in for a loud awakening.
A federal rule going into effect in December will do away with about 2,000 “quiet zones” across the nation, where trains are allowed to pass through intersections without blowing their horns. Marshfield, Junction City and Wausau have train horn bans during certain hours, said state Railroad Commissioner Rodney Kreunen.
Removing the quiet zones will reduce accidents and deaths at crossings because trains will be able to sound their horns as a warning, according to the Federal Railroad Administration. In 2002, the last available statistics, 357 motorists died at railroad crossings, but it’s not known how many were at silent crossings.
The new law requires local officials who want silent crossings to add safety measures, such as nonmountable medians and gates that motorists can’t drive around near the crossings. That can cost $100,000 or more per crossing.
Kreunen said the rule has created a lot of interest from communities that want increased safety measures so they don’t have to listen to the horns. But, he added, “in these economic times, that’s not going to be real easy. Most of them don’t have a checkbook.”
The National League of Cities, which represents 18,000 cities, opposes the new rule “because of its fundamental pre-emption of local authority and imposition of unfunded mandates” – the requirement that communities pay for upgrades to keep crossings quiet.
Marshfield’s ban on train horns during nighttime hours came about from resident complaints, said Mayor Mike Meyers. But the city also recently upgraded many of its crossings when Highway 13, which runs through the city, was rebuilt, he said.
Meyers said the city so far doesn’t know if the new security measures will help Marshfield qualify to keep its quiet zone status.
“If we have to go through that process, I imagine, for the interest of those people who are upset by train whistles, we’d have to pursue that,” he said.
Noise complaints eventually led scores of cities in 24 states to establish quiet zones at crossings where train tracks intersect roads. Such “whistle bans” varied widely from one community to the next, but they all kept engineers from sounding train horns in anything but an emergency.
Kreunen says people who live in homes near railroad tracks should expect to hear noise. “When you buy a house next to a train track, people seem to ignore the fact that trains will be going through. It isn’t just about the person who bought the house next to the track. From my standpoint, if I never go to another railroad accident, that’s OK with me.”
About 9 million Americans are affected by train horn noise, according to the FRA. Spokesman Steven Kulm says the new rule will reduce that number by 3.4 million if communities put in place the safety measures required to keep crossings silent. He estimates that the new rule will prevent 13 deaths, 60 injuries and 123 accidents over a 20-year period.
Stevens Point doesn’t have a train horn ban, but it plans to add safety measures on crossings that would allow the city to qualify for a quiet zone ruling, said Mayor Gary Wescott. The improvements include closing crossings, adding nonmountable medians and putting up new signals and gates, he said.
“I think the rule is a good solution for communities that want to enhance the safety of crossings,” Wescott said. “Communities tend to look at this in terms of quiet zones. What you’ve really accomplished is, you’ve improved safety at all the crossings.”