Westfield on track to silence train horns

The sounds of train horns in Westfield will soon be silenced.

Last week, the council adopted a 24-hour quiet-zone ordinance, concluding a three-year effort to get train horns banned in Westfield.

Residents living close to the train crossing on Rahway Avenue near Lamberts Mill Road have long complained about horns blaring throughout the night.

"Obviously the closer you live to the intersection, the louder you hear the horns," said Andy Skibitsky, Westfield's mayor. "On spring and summer nights, when residents want to have the windows open, they can't, because it's too loud. And you can hear those horns from far away."

To silence the horns, which are blown to warn motorists of trains approaching an intersection, the town had to take extra precautions to make the crossing safe for vehicles.

In 2006, Skibitsky and council leaders started the step-by-step process to get train whistles banned at the one crossing in town.

First, the state Department of Transportation approved the town's application for a quiet zone. Then, the township allocated $70,000 to construct safety measures, such as gates that come down and block the road when a train is approaching. The gates obstruct the entire road, as opposed to those at regular crossings that block only the driver's lane. The township built medians on both sides of the tracks so motorists can't drive around the gate.

The town installed a power-indicator, in case an outage occurs and prevents the gates from falling. Town leaders waited 60 days for comments from the freight companies after an official notice to establish the quiet zone was filed on Aug. 21.

Councilman Mark Ciarrocca, head of the public safety, parking and transportation committee, said about 80 trains cross the Rahway intersection every day and many in the early morning hours.

"I can't overstate how many people in Westfield, especially in the south side of town near the crossing, are affected by these whistles," said Ciarrocca. "The most important impact is that it's going to be a significant quality of life improvement for anyone who lives near the train tracks. They will be able to sleep through the night without hearing the whistles."

In the coming days, officials will uncover signs that warn motorists train whistles do not sound at the crossing.

According to the Federal Railroad Administration, Edison and Montclair have train-horn quiet zones. And Woodbridge is working on implementing them at four crossings.

Rob Kulat, a spokesman for the administration, said quiet zones are a growing trend throughout the country.

"More communities want the train horns to stop blowing, but in order to do that they have to take certain measures to ensure that residents are safe," Kulat said. "The train horn is probably the safest way to deter highway rail accidents, but there are other ways to mitigate accidents."

Tracee M. Herbaugh is a reporter for the New Jersey Local News Service. She may be reached at (908) 243-6214 or therbaugh@njlns.com.