Can a city require a railroad to operate at a specific speed or not sound the horn of a locomotive?
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) governs many of the operational aspects of railroads. Federal regulation preempts any local speed restrictions and most operating practice procedures on trains. (Section 20106 of Title 49, United States Code.) Federal law requires the sounding of the locomotive’s horn at least 20 seconds before the train approaches a rail/ highway crossing of any public road. Trains or engines must sound the horn as they proceed through the entire crossing. The FRA has an administrative rule, which allows certain communities to apply for “quiet zones” if the rule’s requirements are met. Once the rule’s requirements are met, the locomotive would not sound its horn when passing through the crossing in most instances. See 49 Code of Federal Regulations part 222 for those requirements. Cities may also wish to investigate the use of “wayside horns”, which are horns mounted at the signal post of a public rail/highway crossing so that the locomotive does not have to b
