'Quiet zones' ahead? Jupiter, Gardens want Brightline, FEC trains to hush horns at crossings

JUPITER — More trains are rolling through northern Palm Beach County and three communities want them to be quiet about it.

With some residents who live near crossings saying the sound of train horns is disrupting their lives, local officials in Jupiter, Tequesta and Palm Beach Gardens have decided to apply to federal officials for "quiet zones" at every railroad crossing within their boundaries.

Currently, there are no quiet zones in northern Palm Beach County, which saw traffic along the FEC Railway tracks increase in September when Brightline began running passenger trains from Miami to Orlando International Airport.

The Jupiter Town Council heard from several residents when it voted on March 19 to apply for quiet zones. Some of them live near the crossing at Indiantown Road and Alternate A1A, south of Sawfish Bay Park.

“You can’t sit in your backyard to have a nice glass of wine and converse with people because of the stupid train going by,” Barbara Talty told the Town Council.

A few said they have struggled at times to get a full night’s sleep. One woman told the Tequesta Village Council on March 14 she closes her hurricane shutters every night in an effort to block out sound.

What it takes to create a railway crossing quiet zone

To create a quiet zone at a railroad crossing, a municipality must meet certain safety requirements and submit an application to the Federal Railroad Administration. The approval process usually takes several months.

If a quiet zone is granted, train horns are still used in emergencies or to comply with other federal regulations or railroad operation rules. The quiet zone removes the requirement for conductors to sound their horns at the crossing, but they still can do it when needed.

According to Brightline, 32 trains roll between Orlando and Miami every day. They share the tracks with the Florida East Coast Railway trains, which transport cargo up and down the East Coast. Some FEC trains are more than a mile long.

Most of the comments from residents pertain to Brightline, which brings trains to the north county area from about 7:30 a.m. until about 10:30 p.m., according to its weekday schedule.

Quiet-zone debates pit noise complaints against safety concerns

The north county requests come as Riviera Beach, their neighbor to the south, has begun to add safety signs at its four crossings before quiet zones take effect there this spring. The city announced in early March that the Federal Railway Administration had granted its request to reduce horn noise.

Jupiter applied for a quiet zone at the Riverside Drive crossing in December 2022, but the process has been on hold until Brightline installs safety fencing along the tracks. The Town Council's March 19 vote to seek quiet zones for all seven railroad crossings from Donald Ross Road to the Tequesta border split the board 2-1.

Council members Ron Delaney and Cameron May weighed the dangers of silent crossings against residents' requests for quiet and thought it best to pursue the zones. Delaney said he often has heard the train soundings while out on his boat.

Mayor Jim Kuretski dissented, saying he wanted more safety fencing at some of the crossings first.

“I’m an elected official duty-bound on public safety and I am a professional engineer,” Kuretski said before casting a dissenting vote. “I don’t feel I could rationalize accepting loss of lives.”

On March 14, the Tequesta Village Council unanimously agreed to pursue a quiet zone for the Tequesta Drive crossing.

The council had considered the move in December, but said then the horns and whistles were necessary safety measures. Comments from residents helped to persuade them to take another look.

“I really hope that most people, whether driving or walking, would use common sense,” council member Laurie Brandon said at a meeting in March.

Council member Thomas Bradford wanted to pursue a partial quiet zone, which would have been in place from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. daily, rather than for 24 hours.

“I’m still nervous about it,” Bradford said on March 14. “I see crazy stuff out here in Tequesta and going south someone is going to get hurt badly.”

Palm Beach Gardens plans to apply for a quiet zone for seven crossings from Richard Road to Donald Ross Road, a move city officials decided to make about a year ago.

Lake Park — at least for now — won’t apply for quiet zones at its four crossings. Nor will North Palm Beach for its two. Juno Beach is the lone municipality in northern Palm Beach County without any FEC Railway crossings.

Maya Washburn covers northern Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida-Network. Reach her at mwashburn@pbpost.com. Support local journalism: Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Jupiter, Gardens want 'quiet zones' for Brightline, FEC train horns