What are “quiet zones”?
A Quiet Zone is a stretch of track where the FRA has agreed trains are not required to automatically blow the horn except in emergencies. Communities can make a number of investments in additional grade crossing safety at crossings in order to qualify for a Quiet Zone. However, only the FRA can grant a Quiet Zone under the new federal regulation. You can learn more about the FRAs Quiet Zone criteria on their web site. It is important to remember that while a Quiet Zone eliminates the automatic requirement to blow the train horn at public crossings, it does not eliminate all of the other requirements for a train horn to be blown such as when there is a vehicle or person on the track not getting out of the way, when there are track or construction workers within 25 feet of a live track, or when gates and lights at the crossing are not functioning properly.
