Patch: Quiet Zone Revoked
Published: May 11, 2021
By Jenna Fisher
… According to a spokesperson at the Federal Railway Administration, during the week of April 26, the federal body determined that city crossings lacked required supplemental safety measures that the city was requested to have going back to 2008, and thus no longer qualified as a quiet zone. …
… The ruling comes as the Federal Railroad Administration is in the process of inspecting more than 900 quiet zones nationwide to assess their compliance with 49 CFR Part 222, the regulation governing locomotive horn sounding at highway-rail grade crossings, and the process by which communities establish quiet zones, including "pre-rule quiet zones," such as Waltham. …
… A spokesperson for the FRA did not say how many times the body has performed such an inspection of the quiet zones. Waltham has been designated a quiet zone going back to at least 2008, according to the FRA. The city committed that year to adding supplemental safety measures or alternative safety measures, but has not done so, according to the FRA. …
