05-14-2014 Council Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

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May 2014 Railroad Quiet Zone Report Prepared for City of Little Canada 1.0 Introduction The City has been concerned about the impact of the railroad noise to the residents within the Cily from increased train traffic from the Canadian Pacific Railroad (CP). The CP operates a line that runs north south through the City paralleling Rice Street. The train noise is generated by the train horns blowing at six mainline grade crossings. This study addresses the requirements to implement a quiet zone within the City. The CP North South line through Little Canada is called the St. Paul Subdivision. The track is primarily used by the CP. The north end connects at Cardigan Junction with the Paynesville subdivision. The south end connects to the BNSF track in St. Paul. Cardigan is a rail yard and wye that allows trains to move between the two lines and also a place to interchange and store cars. The yard consists of 4 tracks. Trains can also meet there to pass. For many years, the railroad operations have remained steady without many changes to volume, speed or train length.. The Paynesville subdivision in Shoreview was running about 4 to 6 trains per day at speeds up to 40 miles per hour, Most of the trains were CN trains that passed through with their main interchange point at New Brighton or in Minneapolis. The St. Paul subdivision was a very lightly used connecting track that saw 2 trains per day at speeds up to 10 mph. Cardigan Junction was a very seldom used yard and where trains met to pass each other. Train speeds are regulated by the Railroad, FRA and MnDOT. The Railroad is responsible to set the maximum speed for a track. The railroad sets the speed based on track condition, track geometry, profile grades, bridges, train signal type, train signal locations, turnout locations and other operational issues. The FRA has developed track safety standards that use the track condition to set a safe speed on a section of track. Tracks have 7 classes of condition for freight trains that determine train speeds. Rail condition, tle condition, cross level, and drainage are a Mw of the components that determine track speed. Speed can also be restricted based on the train or rail car characteristics. The Railroads are required to follow these regulations or are subject to FRA fines. Trains speeds can be permanent or temporary until a track issue is resolved. MnDOT has train speed policies for road crossing signal systems. The maximum train speeds are based on the design of the circuitry of the signal system, Speed can also be restricted based on sight distance restrictions. The speed limits do not consider track condition. LITTC 126672 Page 1 6