Grafton & Upton Railroad (G&U) Discussion

KEN PATRICK wrote:railroad ties will not be accepted at mass burn plants. they must be landfilled at $55-$65/ton ( $3 tie). look at the 'pile' and gons and project the total costs of disposal. i don't live near a railroad but have run across this practice in bidding on a rail removal project. i projected tie disposal costs to be equal to the value of rail and otm only to be laughed out of the room by folk who routinely discarded ties on the row. i notice that pwrr has been told by the epa to clean up old ties. g&u is avoiding tie disposal costs. it should be forced by the epa and towns to dispose of these properly. ken patrick

On June 11th 2012, Sandra Hakala, Department Coordinator - Town of Upton, Ma. wrote: in the Meeting Minutes of the Selectmen Meeting 5/15/12:

135 Distribute the Executive Summary of the Railroad Fact Finding Committee
136 Ms. Robinson prepared at the request of the fact finding committee a copy of a transmittal letter,
137 and draft of the executive summary, table of contents and opinions of the committee on whether
138 or not the Board of Selectmen should file for a declaratory ruling from the Surface
139 Transportation Board. The RFFC had asked that the Board be provided with this portion of the
140 report for their review, prior to the RFFC making a formal presentation to the Selectmen at the
141 June 5th meeting.

I previously wrote: Just quietly wondering... Once trackage and service is restored through to Milford, will they quietly "stop and protect" the "private crossing" on Green Street in Hopedale, or will they (in the interest of safety mind you!) make sure they sound the standard warning sequence with the horn? Or will they really teach the property owner a lesson by making them REMOVE the crossing?

I'd think this issue would come to the forefront fairly soon.

Cosmo wrote:Doesn't matter.
NORAC rules do not require a whistle sounded at private crossings.

Ridgefielder wrote:

Cosmo wrote:Doesn't matter.
NORAC rules do not require a whistle sounded at private crossings.

Really? Could swear I'd heard MNRR whistling for the private crossing just south of the station in West Redding, CT.

Cosmo wrote:Doesn't matter.
NORAC rules do not require a whistle sounded at private crossings.

On the [b][color=#0000cc][url=http://www.fra.dot.gov/Pages/1773.shtml]FRA Train Horn Rule Fact Sheet page, The FRA[/url][/color][/b] wrote: Sounding the Locomotive Horn: Under the Train Horn Rule, locomotive engineers must sound train horns for a minimum of 15 seconds, and a maximum of 20 seconds, in advance of all public grade crossings, except:

If a train is traveling faster than 45mph, engineers will not sound the horn until it is within ¼ mile of the crossing, even if the advance warning is less than 15 seconds.
If a train stops in close proximity to a crossing, the horn does not have to be sounded when the train begins to move again.
There is a "good faith" exception for locations where engineers can’t precisely estimate their arrival at a crossing.

Wherever feasible, train horns must be sounded in a standardized pattern of 2 long, 1 short and 1 long. The horn must continue to sound until the lead locomotive or train car occupies the grade crossing.

For the first time, a maximum volume level for the train horn has been established at 110 decibels. The minimum sound level remains 96 decibels. Railroads have until 2010 to fully comply with the maximum volume level requirement.

In the [b][color=#0000cc][url=http://www.fra.dot.gov/downloads/Safety/train_horn_rule/FAQ4.pdf]FRA Train Horn Rule Frequently Asked Questions Dec 2003 Interim Final Rule, The FRA[/url][/color][/b] wrote: 4. Private Crossings
4.1 How are private crossings treated under the rule?
This regulation does not address the use of horns at private crossings except when those private crossings are within a quiet zone. (Section 222.3)
FRA will not at this time require that the locomotive horn be sounded at private highway-rail crossings. Whether horns must be sounded at such crossings will remain subject to state law (if any) and railroad operating rules. FRA, by not applying this rule to private crossings which are not in quiet zones, has left States free to require the sounding of locomotive horns if it is deemed necessary or appropriate.
At a minimum, private crossings within a quiet zone must be equipped with crossbucks and “STOP” signs conforming to the standards of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), together with advance warning signs.
Private grade crossings that allow access to the public, or that provide access to active industrial or commercial sites, may be included in a quiet zone only if a diagnostic team evaluates the crossing(s) to determine whether the institution of the quiet zone will significantly increase the risk of collision at the private crossing. The crossing must then be equipped or treated in accord with the recommendations of the diagnostic team. (Section 222.25)

On June 5th 2012, Sandra Hakala, Department Coordinator for the Town of Upton wrote: At 6:30 the Board of Selectmen invited the Railroad Fact Finding Committee to present their
report. Gary Bohan, Chair, Richard Desjardins, Vice Chair, and Bill Taylor, Citizen
Representative was present.

Chair Bohan called the meeting to order because they were posted and proceeded to give the
Selectman an overview of the project. He spoke of their mission statement and stated because
the committee was unable to come up with a consensus the two groups wrote a position paper.
Each group then gave an overview of their viewpoint. >> Read the full meeting minutes HERE <<
or the attached copy below.