August 2003
Summary
The sounding
of locomotive horns or whistles as trains approach highway-rail
grade crossings has been used as a safety precaution by railroads
since the late 1800's. "Whistle bans" have been established
in some locations by local ordinance or through agreements with
particular railroads. Unfortunately, the silencing of locomotive
horns greatly increases the safety hazard to vehicles at grade crossings.
In 1994, Congress
passed legislation that required FRA to issue regulations mandating
the use of train horns at public grade crossings, with several exceptions.
One exception allows communities to implement "supplementary
safety measures" at grade crossings to compensate for train
horn or whistle blowing. In 1995, FRA released a
report
on the national impacts of local whistle bans (
updated
in 2000) and conducted an extensive program of public
outreach to make communities aware of the forthcoming rulemaking.
FRA also sought information on supplementary safety measures that
would support creating quiet zones in communities that were sensitive
to train horn noise. FRA contacted more than 160 jurisdictions known
to have whistle bans in place, and addressed forums comprised of
State and local officials and community groups.
In January 2000,
FRA published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on the use of locomotive
horns. Written comments were received through May of that year,
and FRA held 12 public hearings and a technical conference to receive
oral comments. Almost 3,000 comments were received and reviewed
by FRA for the NPRM and an accompanying draft environmental impact statement .
Status:
FRA is currently preparing a final rule.