Blackfalds Alberta - The Town of Blackfalds is looking at train whistle cessation for four crossings.
 
Town council approved a contract this week for Watt Consulting Group to assess if whistle cessation is viable at these stops and what other steps may be necessary to take first.
 
The crossings are:
 
South Street east of the RCMP detachment;
Pedestrian at-grade crossing at Waghorn Street and Gregg Street (south of the Eagle Builders Centre);
Womacks Road (east of the Eagle Builders Centre).
 
The contract is for $30,000 and will also assess a fourth crossing at 40-0 Lakeside Sargent Road in Lacombe County, a joint a project with that municipality.
 
The cost for the fourth crossing review is $5,000, split between the two municipalities.
 
"At-grade crossings which already have signal arms and are protected, are conducive to moving forward with whistle cessation because the majority of the work to make them safer is already completed," explains Preston Weran, Director of Infrastructure and Property Services, Town of Blackfalds.
 
"A number of years ago, many of these crossings wouldn't have had these safety requirements in place. As an area develops around a track, these arms and lights are put in, making it easier to move to whistle cessation."
 
Weran suggests train whistles are getting more attention because more people are now working from home.
 
Once the study is complete, public consultations will occur before town council gives final approval.
 
Cessation wouldn't occur until 2025 at the earliest, Weran says.
 
Terry Cunha, spokesman at CPKC, says the company views train whistles as a vital safety feature to protect motorists, pedestrians, and train crews.
 
"Train whistles are also used to alert wildlife on or around the tracks that a train is approaching. We are legally responsible to sound the train whistle in accordance with federal rules," Cunha says.
 
"If a municipality decides on behalf of its residents that it wants whistle cessation, we will respect its wishes and will work with the municipality through the Transport Canada process in making the crossing as safe as possible as crossing safety is one of our company's public safety awareness cornerstones."
 
Transport Canada nor the Transportation Safety Board nor CKPA collect train whistle cessation data.
 
But Katherine Proulx, communications advisor for Transport Canada, concurs that cessation efforts in communities do not stop trains from using their whistles when the view is restricted by elements such as weather, track curvature, and other conditions, which is done to alert people or animals near the track.
 
"The sounding of an engine bell or a train whistle is the only warning device that train operators have at their disposal to alert any persons on, or near the tracks of an approaching train," she says.
 
Josh Hall.