You cannot compare a VIA rail train to that of a container train. These trains do not just stop on a dime, they aren’t moving that quickly but still they just don’t put on the brakes and come to a stop. Plus these trains are on a timetable, the company has contracts that have to be met down the line. Maybe they should cut off access to these crossings at night, but whats to stop someone from walking across the tracks. You still need the whistles.
Me too, I’d love to see the sunset off of my back deck.
Like I used to tell my friend, when they refused to stop at the stop sign at a rail crossing. “any time is train time” but they never did listen to me, and they drove across it, because no one was around. THAT is why they blow their whistles. When you have a CN train, loded with 99 double stacked rail cars, they’re not gonna be able to stop to miss an idiot who doesn’t know how to follow road signs.
I really wish people would get out of the stone age. And it’s funny, because there was rail traffic at the waterfront for AGES before the container port came in. I remember hearing the loud CRASH when a train would connect to another rail car, or they were moving rail cars around. And that happened at all hours of the night and day. The differece between then and now is, everybody now has entitlement issues. They think that because they have to hear these things now, when they didn’t before, the noise should automatically have to stop.
Sorry, get used to it, or move.
And if you REALLY want to get somthing done, stop sitting behind your computer desk, bitching. And go bitch to someone who gives a shit.
[quote=“bubbasteve735”]
I also would like to know how you would feel if the whistles didn’t blow, and it was your kid standing on the tracks, unaware of the train coming. Or your teenager, with his shiny new N, crossing the tracks anywhere along the line not paying attention to things around him.
I guess if I had a teenager in my house , I would presume that he or she was my kid .But if they want shiny new Ns to play around the tracks , he/she can buy them or go talk to their motherand she can buy them. Why should I pay for something they may get dirty from being hit by a train ?[/quote]
[quote=“Justin Case”]
Lol have you lost it Justincase? N, as in the novice liscence, as in a new driver…
Won’t somebody please think of the children?
Haha, exactly.
So has any of the concerned people in the neighbourhood let CN know of their noise concerns?
Are there any methods of mitigating or lessening the sounds to acceptable levels, which heve been proposed to CN?
Not to sing the same old tune, but, all I am hearing are the complaints.[/quote]
Chief…Take a look at Salty Bear’s response. Of course we know how responsive Gordo & his sidekick Jacko are to citizens bringing forward community concerns…
[quote=“bubbasteve735”]I lived on Moresby avenue and never heard these loud whistles people are talking about, maybe I wasn’t listening, or maybe I just got used to it. …
Like I learned in elementary school. Anytime is train time. In other words, be happy they’re blowing their whistles, because they’re doing it four our well being, not to be a nuisance.[/quote]
Maybe it’s time to start listening and update your knowledge of railway best practices from what you learned in elementary school? Whistling is not the only way to protect life. Controlled crossings and fencing is used in many urban areas as an effective alternative. What we need is a proactive municipal leadership to ensure safety, quality of life and industrial activity can all be balanced as the port expands.
Of course CN is going to say controlled crossings are too expensive … their role is to maximize profits not to worry about the quality of life in the village of Prince Rupert. The job of protecting quality of life while also encouraging economic activity is our elected officials and their minions.
From www. proximityissues.ca
[quote]Railway / Municipality Proximity Issue Details
FAQs, Applicable Legislation, and References to Further Information
CATEGORY 3. Public Annoyance
Subject Area 3.1. Noise
Issue 3.1.b. Train Whistling
Frequently Asked Questions
• Can train whistling at highway-railway crossings be stopped?
Ans. Trains are required to sound the engine whistle a quarter of a mile before all public crossings, at every whistle post along the railway right-of-way and at frequent intervals when view is restricted by weather or track curvature. However, under very specific circumstances and under strict regulation, whistling may be waived for a specific crossing or crossings. For those who wish to explore the elimination of whistling in their area, the steps to be followed are contained in Transport Canada Guideline No.1: Procedure and Conditions for Eliminating Whistling at Public Crossings.
They are as follows:
a) The municipality should contact the pertinent railway company to indicate that it wishes to initiate a cessation of whistling.
b) Notice should be given to the general public and to certain organizations contained in Transport Canada’s Guideline that the municipality intends to pass a resolution forbidding the use of whistles.
c) The responsible authorities (railway, municipality and road authority) will conduct a detailed safety assessment of the crossing(s) in question.
d) When the parties are in agreement that the requirements for cessation of whistling have been met, the municipality passes a resolution prohibiting whistling. For those locations that are found to not meet the requirements, corrective measures will have to be carried out.
e) Once all the steps have been taken and the crossings meet the requirements of Schedule A to the Guideline, the parties may request that Transport Canada confirm their assessment of the safety conditions at the crossing(s).
f) Once the Director General, Railway Safety is satisfied that all requirements have been met, he/she will then confirm that the railway involved may issue special instructions eliminating the application of C.R.O.R. Rule 14 (l) (ii) at the specific location(s).
• Are there circumstances where whistling cannot be stopped?
Ans. Although it is sometimes considered an annoyance, the railway whistle serves an important role in providing a warning to users of crossings that a train is approaching. In addition, it provides a similar warning to persons trespassing on railway land or using private crossings in the vicinity of the crossing. Because of this, whistling is not eliminated at crossings unless proper protection is in place (this is dependent on factors such as train speed, operation and the number of tracks). As well, whistling cannot be eliminated where a nearby trespassing problem has been identified. Similarly, if operation over nearby private crossings is made safer through the sound of the whistle, the requirement to whistle cannot be eliminated.
Applicable Legislation (What regulates whistling at highway-railway crossings?)
Engine whistling requirements at public crossings at grade are regulated by the Canadian Rail Operating Rules (C.R.O.R.) Rule 14 (l) (ii). These are rules adopted under the Railway Safety Act (RSA). As well, engine whistling at trespass points is regulated by Rule 14 (f) of the C.R.O.R. Section 23.1 of the RSA (Audible Warnings section) regulates the cessation of train whistling and sets out conditions where communities may apply for cessation of whistling. This section prohibits the use of the whistle on any railway equipment in an area within a municipality, but only if the area meets the safety standards prescribed in regulation and the municipality has passed a resolution indicating its agreement with elimination of the whistling.
Reference to further information (How do I find out more about…?)
Railway Safety Act (RSA)
tc.gc.ca/acts-regulations/GE … t/rsa.html
Canadian Rail Operating Rules C.R.O.R. (TC-O 0-48.1) February 14, 2005
tc.gc.ca/railway/cror.htm
Transport Canada Backgrounder “Elimination Of Train Whistling At Public Railway Crossings”
tc.gc.ca/mediaroom/backgroun … 4-r002.htm
Transport Canada Guideline No.1: Procedure & Conditions For Eliminating Whistling At Public Crossings
tc.gc.ca/railway/guideline/e … stling.htm
Operation Lifesaver
operationlifesaver.ca
Guidelines for the Resolution of Complaints Concerning Railway Noise and Vibration Under the Canada Transportation Act otc-cta.gc.ca/doc.php?did=923&lang=eng [/quote]
Of course there are other ways, but since the people on this board come here to complain, and not to get things done going to council etc, your point is, well, pointless…
Hey "Bubba"a little history lesson,it was a group of property owners that brought this issue to a council meeting to see what could be done about the noise.Longshoremen make up the trains and are for the most part,the ones driving and tooting their horn.Not their fault,they toned it down for a while but CN told them that they had to go back to the proper whistling or CN would put their own people to run the trains.
Yes, because it’s the law that they have to blow the whistle at every train crossing.
Just a reminder here that CN still owns most of the waterfront of this city and is the reason this city was originally built in the first place. The operation of a railyard is very necessary for the opeation of this port, they need to have a multi track yard for shunting, organizing and delivering railcars and making up trains arriving and departing. If we as a community want this port to continue to grow and succeed must accept certain inconveniences like noise and traffic etc. and yes we can achieve a balance in terms of safety, quality of life and other issues, but at some point people must stop whining over every little inconvenience and suck it up or get the fuck out.
One hundred percent agree with you that the rail is why this city was originally buit in the first place and also the future of this city depends on encouraging it’s development as one of the best and busiest international ports in North America. However, this does not need to come by giving CN, Maher or any other major industry carte lanche or an open cheque to develop the port solely for their own convenience.
And WTF determines what is whining and what is a legitimate complaint about noise? And WTF determines that all citizens even those living on Beach Avenue and above have to get the fuck out of town? In a democracy, we elect leaders to balance all of the competing demands that society has to deal with and if they are good they use objective measurements and the long term view.
Not one person on this thread has bothered to ask … what exactly is the decibel level of these whistles in the residential areas or even what time of the day are they being blown and then comparing that to national standards and what type of expansion is CN looking to do on the waterfront. Only then can we assess whether this is simply an inconvenience or above the levels of noise pollution that is considered safe and acceptable in Canada.
****The industry advisory groups that CN belongs to all point to the fact that Municipalities and rail ways need to work in close partnership to address the issues that railways bring with their activity. Instead we have a council and city administration that appears surprised that CN cancelled the lease on a building and have no idea on what the plan is. Several years ago a group of citizens asked the city to look into this issue and a proactive city would have set up an advisory group of some nature to commence creating a working partnership with CN and laid out a plan to research, monitor and address the issues that come from port expansion. ****
In fact the issues are not only the rail that the city needs to be concerned about. At the risk of doing an Ajaye here, we will in the next decade seen an explosion in growth and expansion of the port and this will bring it’s own set of issues that Rupert will have to deal with. We currently have an administration that is struggling to figure out how to fix a street light and maybe just maybe it’s time for the citizens of Rupert to demand accountability from it’s elected officials and the sorry mangement group that they’ve hired at City Hall.
BTW if you don’t like hearing a call to action, choose to dismiss managing growth and development as whining, you’re also free to Suck it Up and get out of town.
Back in the 80 the rail yard was going all day with the grain terminal there, plus the cannery at the waterfront was there in the 70 to. The yard was much bigger than it is now. And there was a wood trestle roand going down to the water front where the house are now.
And in the 80’s some folks wore their hair in a style known as a mullet… Are you also advocating a return to this hair style?
[quote=“Speakuppr”]
And in the 80’s some folks wore their hair in a style known as a mullet… Are you also advocating a return to this hair style?[/quote]
Business in front party in teh back.