San Mateo council leans toward double closures at Villa Terrace and East Bellevue to secure train "quiet zone"

San Mateo City Council members on Monday heard a detailed staff update on efforts to create a train "quiet zone" through the city and expressed consensus support for a double‑closure plan affecting Villa Terrace and East Bellevue.

Engineered improvements under the recommended “Option B” would close the at‑grade crossings at Villa Terrace and East Bellevue and are intended to reduce the need for routine train horn sounding without eliminating horns for safety events. Jimmy Voe, engineering manager in Public Works, told the council the double‑closure option currently yields an estimated risk‑index level (the measure used by the Federal Railroad Administration to judge crossing safety) below the city’s target buffer in 2024 data but has risen along with increased Caltrain service; staff reported an increase in the index between July 2024 and August 2025 and said Option B remains the most feasible way to reach the required threshold while balancing schedule and cost.

The proposal and next steps

Voe said the city’s latest cost estimates are substantially higher than the amounts shown in prior presentations. Work that Caltrain now requires in its right‑of‑way — track‑adjacent concrete and asphalt removal, signal housing changes, and related rail improvements — pushed the double‑closure estimate toward roughly $3.6…