Once again, the desire to have a “Quiet Zone” established in town fell on deaf ears of the majority of City Council.
It’s been a frequent request of Bed and Breakfast owners, tourists, and those who live along the railroad tracks. But according to one council member those are just a, “small, special interest group” the city doesn’t need to be listening to.
A “Quiet Zone” is a restriction placed upon the railroads to limit the number of times and how loud the horns blow. Currently, at every crossing or bridge, trains must sound their horns four times at a minimum of 15 seconds – regardless of the time of day. The last blast has to be held until the engine is fully inside the crossing. And it’s 96-110 decibels. A lawn mower, for example, is 75 decibels if you’re hearing it from inside your home.
The Alderman said citizens who want this should reach out to Council and let them know if this is something the City should look into. They also suggested waiting on the completion of the Strategic Plan, a 16-month project that has yet to start, to see if it’s recommended.
And wouldn’t one call a group of mostly over 60 year olds a special interest group?
Another member said they didn’t think JEDCO funds could be used to fund the study as it didn’t create or retain jobs.
Well, how does a strategic plan create or retain jobs?
It was also suggested, “we can do it ourselves” to obtain the necessary information to create a quiet zone.
Well, couldn’t we “do it ourselves” to create a strategic plan? JEDCO is spending between $32,000 – 49,000 to create this plan.
According to USDOT, a quiet zone requires railroads to cease the routine sounding of horns when approaching crossings. It also requires additional safety features at each crossing.
The proposed study, which is required by NTSB and the railroads to establish a quiet zone, would have looked at all the crossings and determined which ones would need to be closed, any one-way streets required, and other safety equipment required.
So glad we have that level of expertise on City Council and in the City population to create such a professional plan. Especially as we outsource all of our infrastructure engineering needs.
Council also brought up how KCS is about to merge with Canadian Pacific which may increase the number of trains – currently an average of 52 a day – and the weight of those trains travelling through town. So it’s only going to get noisier.
At the moment, the Quiet Zone is once again a dead issue.
But, call your Aldermen – their numbers and email addresses are on the City website (https://www.Jeffersontexas.us) – and let them know if you’d like some peace and quiet from the railroads.