Some Puslinch residents are simply looking for the sound of silence – especially near Victoria and Leslie Roads.
While some residents in the township are looking for better signals at railway crossings, almost three dozen in the Victoria and Leslie Road area have signed a petition calling for the elimination of whistle blowing by trains at public crossings near their homes.
They asked the township to arrange with CP Railway to eliminate train whistles at the crossing on Victoria Road, just south of Leslie.
As council reviewed the issue on Nov. 16, councillor Susan Fielding said, “It’s kind of ironic, since other people are trying to get more controls and safety with crossings in their areas.”
Fielding added a comment from her husband, who was raised in that area and believes the train whistle blowing has been going on for over 100 years.
“I was quite surprised to see this in the council package. I had not seen or heard from anyone that this was an issue,” Fielding said.
Councillor Ken Roth said he talked to one of the residents in the area.
Roth added, “I hear the whistle where I live, and I don’t know if it’s my imagination, but I really do think it is blowing more often, longer and louder than it ever has.”
He was told the whistle is still blowing after the engine has passed the intersection.
“I would think it is just part of their risk management,” Roth said.
Mayor Dennis Lever said he spoke with road superintendent Don Creed, who is already looking into the railway crossing at Watson Road.
What surprised Lever is a number of the safety requirements are based on the speed of the train.
“In the end, it is the railway’s decision whether the safety requirements have been met in regard to blowing the whistle,” said Lever.
He assured councillors Creed would look into the matter and he anticipated a report by the next council session.
Councillor Wayne Stokley suggested that bringing the issue to the railway’s attention might also require a detailed – and expensive – study to be undertaken.
He also anticipated Puslinch would be required to pay part of that cost.
“Do we have an idea how much it would cost to have an assessment?” Stokley asked.
Lever said that is what he asked Creed to find out, without it costing the municipality a lot of money.
He added the issue involves two different railways – the Watson Road crossing is the Guelph Junction Railway, while the one at Victoria Road is owned by CP Rail.
Lever said he believes Creed’s informal questions would revolve around what the costs would be to have an inspection.
“But if the trains are travelling more than 50 miles per hour, it is gates which are installed,” Lever said. Those, he added, could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Fielding said the train travels near her home as well – but her home is not near the crossing. “I agree there does seem to be a lot more trains.”
She has noted the whistle blowing as well, even though she does not believe her home is near a section of track where it should be sounding.
In talking to someone she knows who is involved in the train business, she heard trains are having more issues with wildlife.
“As a result, if they see a animal on the tracks, they will blow the whistle.”
Fielding added her property does have an overabundance of deer. “As a result, in a lot of cases the whistle is going to blow, that’s just the way it is.”
Councillor Jerry Schmidt added another consideration is the frequency of the trains.
“How many times a day are they coming through?” Schmidt asked.
He added if the township becomes involved on behalf of silencing the whistle, “would that increase our liability?”
From his viewpoint, Schmidt believes there are a number of issues that need to be considered “before we just jump into this.”
Lever agreed.
“But as I read this, it would be the railway which would have the final say – whether we requested it or not.”
