Trains at some railroad crossings on the eastern side of Olathe could be a lot quieter in the future.
On Tuesday, the Olathe City Council voted 5-0 to allocate $3.4 million to the BNSF East Track Quiet Zone project.
Typically, under Federal Railroad Administration rules, trains have to blow their horns at crossings for at least 15 seconds.
But quiet zone project, a much-anticipated investment, will allow Olathe to have a few railroad crossings on roadways where passing trains won’t sound their requisite horns unless there’s an emergency.
The vote regarding funds for the East Track Quiet Zone was included on the city council’s consent agenda Tuesday, which means it wasn’t individually discussed but considered alongside a series of other items in one vote.
Councilmembers Kevin Gilmore and Matthew Schoonover were absent from the meeting.
Three crossings will be affected
- The BNSF East Track Quiet Zone project will impact the crossings at Dennis Avenue, 151st Terrace and 159th Street.
- Design for the project will last through 2025 with construction anticipated in 2026.
Lights, auto gates to be added at quiet crossings
The Federal Railroad Administration does allow city and county governing bodies to designate “quiet zones” provided they meet specific standards to address any additional safety hazards raised by less warning from passing trains.
Olathe plans to add both automatic gates and lights and conduct other safety upgrades for the designated quiet zone.
According to city documents, these are all “necessary modifications” to allow the crossings to be included in a quiet zone.
Once that’s completed, trains can pass through the crossings at Dennis, 151st Terrace and 159th Street without sounding their horns, which will “decrease the level of noise for nearby residential and business areas,” per the 2025 capital improvement plan for Olathe.
Olathe also looking at other railroad quiet zones
- Listed in the “pending” section of the city’s current five-year Capital Improvement Plan, Olathe also has identified a BNSF Southgate Quiet Zone project.
- Pending means the project is considered a “needed project,” but it is either “unfunded” or so far not prioritized.
- What exactly a Southgate quiet zone might look like or what crossings it could include is unclear.
More Olathe railroad news: Olathe mulling solutions to street-level railroad crossings on western side
