Council committee hears residents' complaints about train horns; staff outline quiet-zone options, June 24, 2013 deadline noted

Residents on multiple Superior corridors told the Committee of the Whole on Oct. 16 that train horns are disrupting sleep and daily life. City staff, rail representatives and a consultant described the federal quiet-zone process, available safety measures and estimated costs; staff said a key deadline for the 20th Street corridor is June 24, 2013.

Public Works Director Jeff Gessmann opened the meeting and introduced SRF Consulting senior engineer Andy Milke, who presented quiet-zone basics and the tools available to reduce the need for locomotive horns. Milke said a qualifying quiet zone must generally be at least a half-mile long and that the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) evaluates risk using a national average called the Nationwide Significant Risk Threshold.

Milke outlined commonly used supplemental safety measures: two- or four-quadrant gates, non-traversable medians or channelization, crossings closures, one-way street conversions, three-quadrant gates and wayside horns. He provided planning-level cost estimates: medians and channelization could range from about $10,000 to $100,000 depending on scope, while four-quadrant gate installations typically exceed $250,000 and sometimes cost more than $500,000. He said the city could pursue phased projects and seek grant funding or railroad cooperation.

City staff said they are preparing a waiver for constant-warning-time circuitry at the 20th Street crossing because of yard complexity and that the crossing has special operational issues that make typical upgrades costly. The consultant and staff noted wayside horns reduce offsite sound exposure in some settings but can still produce significant local noise and are not a universal solution.

Residents described repeated horn blasts through the night, raising concerns about children's sleep, elderly residents and general quality of life. "It's almost impossible to sleep down there at night," Councilor Brown said during public comment summarizing residents' concerns. Several residents asked why switching and yard work occur at night; rail representatives explained freight operations and yard switching are largely continuous and timed to meet customer schedules.

FRA and railroad representatives explained enforcement and complaint processes: trains are required to sound a four-note pattern (two longs, a short, a long) and must begin sounding 15 to 20 seconds before a crossing, with the final long blast continuing while the train clears the crossing. The FRA representative urged residents to report excessive sounding promptly with the date, time, crossing location and, if possible, the locomotive number so railroads and regulators can investigate event recorder data.

Staff summarized next steps: field diagnostic reviews, stakeholder meetings, analysis of crossing-specific risk scenarios, pursuing potential closures where feasible, and submitting the 20th Street waiver application. Staff reiterated that establishing a quiet zone and making related infrastructure changes can take roughly two years and likely requires a mix of local funding, grant-seeking and railroad agreements. Staff noted the community faces a statutory or administrative deadline (cited in the meeting as June 24, 2013) to maintain certain quiet-zone conditions if the city wishes to avoid horn requirements at affected crossings.