Downtown train horns silenced in Tulsa

The downtown Tulsa, Okla., area is now a quiet zone for train horns, officials said. The "quiet zone," or Downtown Sealed Corridor Project, which consists of five extended railroad crossings, requires railroad operators to not blow their horns in designated downtown areas except in emergency instances, the Tulsa World reports.

Dennis Whitaker, a city
of Tulsa planner, said the enhanced safety project went into effect Feb. 11
after a 21-day notice period – which informed Union Pacific, BNSF, SKO Yard and
Sand Springs Railway of the change.

The $750,000 project was
funded through the 2006 Third Penny Sales Tax, and a $1,481,159 federal appropriation
for Safety Hazard Elimination, officials said. The funding was approved through
the 2001 Third Penny Sales Tax, but a shortfall caused the project to be
deferred to the 2006 Third Penny Sales Tax, officials said.

The city of Tulsa and
Brady Village property owners spawned the project’s idea after owners suggested
a sealed corridor would encourage downtown revitalization. The project’s
completion likely will result in quieter surroundings for downtown residents
and businesses, officials said.

Marlin Keranen, general
manager of the Crown Plaza Hotel, 100 E. Second St., said that the quiet zone
will "definitely increase our guest experience and cut down on
complaints."

Keranen said Crowne Plaza
has lost more than $1 million in business in the past year and a half after
airline crews and other top clients opted to reside at other locations because
of the noise.

But Luke Harris, a Brady
Heights resident, said the whistle didn’t bother him or his family.

"I can hear it, but
it doesn’t disturb us," said Harris, 28.

Albert Cronhein, manager
at Mexicali Border Cafe at 14 W. Brady St., said he wants to hear train whistles.

"It makes downtown
Tulsa alive," he said.

The project also included
a loop detector system that will detect a vehicle inside the gates and allow it
to exit before the gate arms come down. Longer gate arms have also been
installed at Greenwood, Elgin, Cheyenne, Elwood, and Guthrie crossing sections
to prevent vehicles from driving between them and onto the railroad tracks.