How will noise impacts be determined, and can blowing the train horns be waived through neighborhoods along the route?
Using federal standards, the environmental analysis will determine if noise impacts are significant enough to require mitigation measures such as options to avoid, minimize, or mitigate affected neighborhoods or other measures. One aspect related to train operations is the potential use of ‘quiet zones’. Under this plan, rail-street intersections would use additional crossing protection such as four quadrant gates and raised medians to prevent automobiles from crossing tracks when trains are approaching. If such a system were used, trains would not be required to blow their horns as a warning when approaching intersections. This issue will be investigated further during the environmental and design process.
