Downtown Cedar Rapids road work prepares for railroad ‘quiet zone’

CEDAR RAPIDS - It's a common occurrence in downtown Cedar Rapids - the deafening blare of a train whistle.

But an ongoing project between the city and Union Pacific Railroad aims to give a respite by potentially reducing the number of times trains need to use their horns.

Work by the city to convert downtown one-way to two-ways streets includes the installation of gates and medians at several rail crossings. Doing so increases safety, but also opens up the possibility of getting a half-mile stretch of railroad designated as a 'quiet zone,” which reduces the number of times train engineers are required to sound their horns in the zone.

Matt Myers, a Cedar Rapids traffic engineer, said downtown growth, including in residential buildings and at businesses like the DoubleTree Hotel, have driven discussion on ways to reduce the train noise.

'I think it's a high priority,” Myers said. 'I think once we get this first generation of quiet zones out, we are already hearing - how do we extend that down throughout the downtown?”

Work has been underway to convert downtown segments to two-way, including current work on Second and Fourth avenues SE. Those projects include installation of medians and gates at the crossings with the Union Pacific Railroad.

Once in place, those elements offer the safety warnings currently provided by train horns.

'The train horns are our safety device. The arms and the medians are considered an alternative to that train horn,” Myers said.

Myers said other areas where the public can cross the tracks - such as on trails - also will need to be closed off or have gates added to ensure safety and compliance with the quiet zone rules set by the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Railroad Administration.

With those measures in place, the city can apply to the railroad administration for a quiet zone designation. Once approved, the required use of train whistles is reduced in the zone.

Myers said he hopes the designation reduces the use of train horns by about 30 to 40 percent.

A quiet zone designation does not eliminate the use of horns and applies only to the area considered a quiet zone. Downtown is near the Union Pacific's switching location, and trains blow their horns whenever they change directions.

Myers said it will be at least a year until the city is ready to seek a quiet zone designation.

The city is paying for the entire project, with the Union Pacific carrying out the construction efforts on the crossings.

Union Pacific's work will include the installation of lights and gates at the railroad crossings.

'While this type of work is routine, the project is unique in that the road is changing from one-way to two. It will take several months to order and receive material from our supplier, and then another few months to complete the project,” Kristen South, a Union Pacific spokeswoman, said in an email.

The Union Pacific portion of the project should begin later this year and be finished in early 2018, Myers said.

The contracts for the rail projects have been roughly $428,000 for Second Avenue SE, $265,000 for Fourth Avenue SE and $253,000 for Fifth Avenue SE, according to an email from Emily Breen, a city spokeswoman.

City officials have said funds will come from road-use tax dollars, general obligation bonds and the Paving for Progress program if the projects require pavement improvements.

Third Avenue SE is expected to be converted to a two-way street and see rail crossing upgrades next year, Myers said.

The First Avenue E. crossing also is planned for upgrades, but officials are waiting to see how the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission rules on proposals for downtown casino proposals before getting too far. One of the proposed casinos would attach to the DoubleTree Hotel above the tracks.

The state commission plans to make a decision on the casino proposals Thursday morning.

In the future, gate and median projects could take place on Sixth, Seventh, Eighth and Ninth avenues SE, which could see a quiet zone designation expand into the NewBo area, Myers said.

l Comments: (319) 339-3175; mitchell.schmidt@thegazette.com