A Civic Capacity reader by the name of Jim recently asked me a really good question, “Why can’t we silence the train horns in Troy?”
Ask those that live on the city’s north and east sides and most people will tell you at least a dozen or more trains roll through every day. That’s probably a rough estimate, but it certainly more than the last federal record for the East Main Street crossing that lists just 5 through trains a day, plus 16 switching moves, and the railroad filed that count. Neither number is perfect. But everyone agrees on one thing: when a train comes through, we often hear the horn.
Federal rules require train horns at public crossings. An engineer must start the horn 15 to 20 seconds before the train reaches the crossing, using two long blasts, one short, and one long. The horn must be between 96 and 110 decibels. The rule has stood since 2006. The horn is a safety tool. It warns drivers, walkers, and anyone standing on the tracks.
A quiet zone is a stretch of track where trains don’t sound their horns as a routine matter. These zones must be at least a half mile long, and it can cover one crossing or many in a row. To be clear, quiet doesn’t mean silent. Engineers can still use the horn in an emergency or when someone or something is on the tracks. Residents should expect fewer horns, not none.
Only a “public authority” can create a quiet zone, which in our case, means the City. When it comes to Quiet Zones, the Federal Railroad Administration sets the rules, and the public authority pays for the infrastructure to make the quiet zone possible.
In other words, take away the horn, and the city must make up for that lost safety some other way. Every crossing in the zone needs flashing lights and gates, a power-out indicator, and a warning system that gives drivers the same time no matter how fast the train moves. Beyond that, the city can add raised medians that keep cars from driving around a gate, four-quadrant gates that block both sides of the road, or one-way streets. It can also close a crossing altogether.
There are two ways to get there. If the city builds the FRA’s listed safety measures and the crossing’s risk score lands at or below the national average, the city can set up the zone on its own. That takes some administrative paperwork, including a 60-day comment window, the construction, a risk calculation, and a notice of establishment.
If the city wants to use something not on the FRA’s list, it must apply and wait for an answer, which adds another 60-day review. The state’s rail office stays out of quiet zone work unless the city is also thinking about closing a crossing.
Now for the money, which is where most quiet zones stall. Union Pacific puts four-quadrant gates at $300,000 to $500,000 per crossing. An engineering firm that does this work says the average runs more than $250,000 per crossing, with road work on top. A basic warning system of lights, gates, and timing equipment runs $185,000 to $400,000, according to the same railroad. Any crossing that lacks one would need it first. And while most of the at-grade crossings along the main CSX line in Troy has some of these crossings, it doesn’t have all the infrastructure a quiet zone needs.
Raised medians cost much less. A Texas study priced them at about $13,000 to $15,000 for one crossing, though that is a low-end example from another state. Then there’s upkeep. Union Pacific estimates $4,000 to $10,000 a year per crossing, and the city would pay that every year.
Troy has ten at-grade crossings, so the math adds up fast. As an illustration only, ten crossings at $250,000 each comes to $2.5 million. At $500,000 each, it is $5 million. The real number depends on details we don’t have: which crossings already have modern gates, where medians fit, and whether any crossings might be canddiates to be closed. Not every crossing needs the most expensive fix. An early FRA cost study of a corridor found that only 3 of 12 crossings would need four-quadrant gates. That was in 2000, and Troy’s answer could differ.
The city would need to take on a few tasks. It would pull the federal inventory record for each crossing and check how current it is. The East Main record, for example, was updated in July 2026. It would gather the railroad, the state, emergency crews, and the schools for a walk-through of each crossing. That step isn’t required, but the state recommends it. Then it would decide where a zone begins and ends, get real prices, consider closures, and send the required notices.
Troy looked at this in 2013 and chose not to go ahead. News coverage at the time said horns can be silenced only when other safety measures make up for them. The reason given was cost. Thirteen years is a long time. Prices have changed, and the train count deserves a fresh look.
If you think a quiet zone is worth a second look, leave a comment or bring it up at the next city council meeting. Ask for a clear number on trains per day as well, the city might have better data on this topic. Once the information is received, our town can then judge whether the quiet is worth the cost.
Do you have a question about local government you want answered? Drop me a line at pinnaclestrategiesltd@gmail.com and I will do my best to answer it!
This is what it looks like when residents stay informed. If you find value in this work, share it with a neighbor, a colleague, or anyone who cares about this community. Paid subscriptions keep it going — $5 a month.
Civic Capacity runs on one thing: readers who believe local journalism matters. If you want to support this work without a subscription, you can now make a one-time contribution through Buy Me a Coffee — or in my case, Buy Me an Iced Tea. Click the button below. Every contribution goes directly into the work you read here every day.