Volume Reduced on Caltrain Horns

By

September 1, 2009

Caltrain has completed a project to reduce the volume of its horns to the previous level. A regulator valve that allows the volume to be precisely set has been installed on all of Caltrain’s operating locomotives and cab cars.

Neighbors may continue to notice the horns for two reasons: because the horns are up higher on the trains, the sound is dispersed over a wider area; and engineers are now able to perform the required sequential blast.

Caltrain is working with an independent engineering firm to determine if the horns can be mounted under the train and still meet federal regulations. In order to accomplish this, a new air supply system must be designed, tested and, assuming that the testing is successful, installed on all of Caltrain’s equipment. It is estimated that it will take about four weeks for work on a prototype to be completed.

“We appreciate the public’s patience as we continue to work toward a long-term solution,” said Deputy CEO Chuck Harvey.

Train horns are regulated by the Federal Railroad Administration, which stipulates the decibel level, the sequence of the blasts and when the horn must be used. The decibel level must be between 96 and 110 decibels. The engineer is required to sound two longs, one short and one long blast on the horn ¼ mile before entering a grade crossing. There are 55 crossings (including 11 stations with pedestrian crossings) between San Francisco and San Jose. There are other situations where the engineer is required to sound the horn; examples of this would be when he sees someone on the tracks or standing on the station platform. In these cases, one long blast is used to warn the people that the train is coming.

Caltrain moved the horns from underneath the trains to the top of the trains when it was discovered that the horns could not produce the sequential blasts required by federal law.