[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 111 (Thursday, July 25, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1371-E1372]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      THE TRAIN WHISTLE RESOLUTION

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. WILLIAM O. LIPINSKI

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 25, 1996

  Mr. LIPINSKI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in order to introduce a piece 
of legislation that will benefit communities throughout the Nation. My 
legislation is a straightforward resolution regarding the 
implementation of the train whistle requirement of the Swift Rail Act 
of 1994.
  An amendment added to the Swift Rail Development Act of 1994 mandated 
the Secretary of Transportation to issue regulations requiring trains 
to sound their horns at every public road-rail grade crossing in the 
country, 24 hours a day. According to the law, the Secretary must issue 
the new regulations by November 1996.
  There are approximately 168,000 public highway-rail crossings in the 
United States and railroads regularly sound train whistles at most of 
these crossings. Trains sound their horn as a final warning of a 
train's approach; the horn is in addition to motorist warning devices 
such as signs, lights, bells, and gates at crossings. However, at 
nearly 2,100 crossings, local communities have banned train whistles to 
limit excessive noise in residential or other designated areas. The 
rules required by the Swift Rail Development Act will now preempt the 
local ordinances that silence train whistles.
  At a distance of a half-mile, the noise level of a standard American 
train whistle is 86 decibels. This is well over what the U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency says is the maximum noise threshold 
tolerable for peace and serenity. It is no wonder that communities that

[[Page E1372]]

have developed along rail lines would want to limit when and where 
trains can sound their horns.
  But now, because of the Swift Rail Development Act, trains will sound 
their whistles at every public grade crossing in America. This may not 
pose a problem for rural America, but it is a real issue for 
communities, like those in Illinois, that are located along rail lines. 
The Chicago area, for example, is the historic rail hub of the United 
States and has some 1,500 trains moving daily through 2,000 crossings. 
The impact of all these trains blowing their whistles day and night 
would be immediate and obvious and would make the jet noise at O'Hare 
International Airport seem like a minor irritation. The village of 
Western Springs, which is located in my congressional district, has 
four street crossings and one pedestrian crossing and the new law would 
mean 75 minutes of whistle blowing a day.
  In 1988, the Illinois General Assembly passed a State law which 
required both freight and passenger trains to sound their horns when 
approaching crossings, day and night. The law preempted any 
local ordinances that banned train whistles. As soon as railroads began 
implementing the law, the public outcry was so strong that a DuPage 
County judge stepped in and signed a temporary restraining order to 
keep trains from blowing their horns. Illinois residents living near 
rail lines could not live with the noise. They could not even sleep 
through the night without being interrupted by a train whistle. Shirley 
DeWine of Berwyn, which is also located in my congressional district, 
was quoted as saying that she would have to sell her house, which is 
located a block from the Burlington Northern Railroad if the trains 
kept blowing their whistles. Fortunately, the Illinois Commerce 
Commission took emergency action to make sure that the ban on train 
horns would remain in effect at most crossings.

  However, the peace and quiet in Illinois is once again being 
threatened. This time it is a Federal law that requires trains to blow 
their whistles at all public grade crossings at all hours of the day 
and night. Therefore, I, along with a majority of my Illinois 
colleagues, am introducing this important resolution to express the 
sense of Congress that the Secretary of Transportation should take into 
account the interests of the affected communities before issuing the 
final regulations.
  The Swift Rail Development Act of 1994 does allow the Secretary of 
Transportation to provide exemptions to the train whistle requirement 
at grade crossings where other safety measures are shown to provide the 
same level of safety as a final warning from a train whistle. This 
resolution directs the Secretary to also take into account other 
criteria, such as the past safety record at the grade crossing and the 
needs of the community. Also, the resolution allows communities up to 3 
years to install supplemental safety measures whenever the Secretary 
determines that supplementary safety measures are necessary to provide 
an exception to the train whistle requirement. The resolution also 
directs the Secretary to work in partnership with affected communities 
to provide technical assistance and to develop a reasonable schedule 
for the installation of those measures. Supplemental safety measures 
are often costly and complicated, and local communities need both 
financial and technical help installing these safety measures.
  The Federal Railroad Administration has been engaged in a very active 
outreach effort inform communities of the forthcoming rules regarding 
train whistles. Administrator Jolene Molitoris informed me, in a letter 
to my office in February, that because of the intense interest in this 
issue, the FRA will not be able to issue a final rule by the imposed 
deadline of November 2, 1996. I believe this is encouraging news. The 
FRA and the Secretary of Transportation can use the extra time to 
research and develop additional alternatives to whistle blowing. In 
fact, this resolution will help guide the Secretary of Transportation 
as he continues to work out the final details of the train whistle 
requirement.
  I understand that the intent of the train whistle requirement is to 
reduce highway-rail crashes but it is a blanket, one-size-fits-all 
solution to the problem of rail safety. The resolution I am introducing 
today allows the Secretary to consider at-grade, accident-reducing 
safety measures other than whistle blowing that are practical for the 
affected communities.
  I encourage my colleagues from throughout the Nation to join the 
members of the Illinois delegation, including Congressman Rush, 
Congressman Jessie Jackson, Jr., Congressman Yates, Congressman Porter, 
Congressman Weller, Congressman Costello, Congressman Fawell, 
Congressman Denny Hastert, Congressman Ewing, Congressman LaHood, 
Congressman Durbin, and myself, in sponsoring this legislation. We 
recognize the important safety issues involved, but we also recognize 
that communities must be given affordable options for avoiding the 
whistle requirements.

                          ____________________