With only one railroad crossing to contend with, the city of White Salmon is poised to make sure it's not a disruptive one.
On Feb. 6, the White Salmon City Council voted 4-1 to move ahead with forwarding an application that would make the crossing -- at the bottom of Dock Grade Road -- a "railroad quiet zone."
The designation would mean that locomotives passing through the area would not automatically blow their air horns as they approached the South Dock Grade Road crossing -- unless the engineer sees a possible danger.
"They can always blow the horn in an emergency, or if they see somebody walking along the tracks," explained Robin Hale, owner of Bridge RV Park on State Route 14.
"There is just one crossing in White Salmon," added Hale. "That crossing is very noisy, and train traffic has increased."
A group of citizens and business owners worked for about a year to make sure the crossing met all the criteria necessary to create a quiet zone. The council vote was the official "green light" from the city to submit the application.
"We have broad support from the business community, and we meet the criteria from the Federal Railroad Administration to qualify," explained Sharon McCormack, one of the organizers of the quiet zone effort. "All safety and city codes are met, and there is no cost to the city."
The crossing qualifies for a quiet zone in part because there is relatively little vehicular traffic, and because it is protected with crossing gates.
"It's pretty well cut and dried if you meet guidelines, and show that you have," Hale added.
Council member Brad Roberts made a motion to approve the railroad quiet zone. Before the council members voted, however, councilor Timi Keene said she believed the city should take a more in-depth look at the proposal before agreeing to it.
"This application would make the city responsible for this quiet zone," Keene said. "But we have not prepared the document and submitted it."
Keene said there were discrepancies in some of the figures used in applying for the quiet zone status.
"In different places, the document says there are 88, 90, or 370 vehicles per day using the crossing," Keene explained.
Keene added that she was worried about liability in the event of an accident at the crossing.
"The city will be liable for any mishaps that occur at that crossing. We need clarification before we vote on it," Keene said. "It behooves the city to have a letter reporting what the liability may be. We need to determine that before we pursue this."
The city attorney, Ken Woodrich, advised the council that he believed Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF) and federal rail safety officials would not consider allowing a "no whistle" zone if they believed there was any discernible safety risk.
"BNSF considers these applications on a tight rein," said Woodrich. "They are allowed only if there is a minimal level of risk."
Mayor David Poucher said he believed the city's legal exposure from having a railroad quiet zone was virtually non-existent.
"I think you're firing at straw men here," Poucher said to Keene.
Mike Miller, one of those working on the quiet zone effort, said he did not see any reason to delay the application further.
"We've been working really hard on this for a year now," said Miller. "We meet all the requirements. There is very little traffic on that road, and to me it's a no-brainer. To sideline this into a committee is just not appropriate at this point."
Hale agreed.
"We went through the process," Hale said. "The federal government is giving you a loophole to do this. If there are any safety questions, BNSF and the federal government can put this deal aside. You're just going to duplicate everything we've already done and we'll end up in the same place. There is no reason to be going backwards."
Attorney Woodrich said he believed the process that had been followed was adequate, and he did not believe it put the city at any excess liability exposure. He noted that rail crossing safety experts would review the application, and would let the city know if there were any problems.
"This goes through a process where experts are analyzing it. I don't see where the City Council would have that level of expertise," Woodrich said.
The council then voted 4-1 to OK the application.
Former City Council member John Mayo, who made the quiet zone one of his projects while on the council, said he was gratified that the council had moved the application forward.
"The request is well thought out, and the city should always try to enrich the quality of life for its citizens," Mayo said.
Mayo added that the riverfront district of White Salmon is important for the city's future economic development, and reducing the train noise is a significant factor.
"The area is not really in our minds as part of the city, but the next area of growth is the waterfront district, and the quiet zone is a fundamental part of that," Mayo explained. "Without the quiet zone, you could never put a hotel there, or a restaurant, or a law office. As a city, the quiet zone gives us a new card to play. It makes it a high quality location."
On Monday, Miller said the whistles could stop blowing for the Dock Grade crossing within about three months, if the process continued to progress smoothly.
"This notice of intent goes to the Federal Railroad Administration, the Washington Utilities & Transportation Commission, BNSF, and Amtrak," Miller said. "Then there is a 60-day comment period, and another application. It's a process, but we meet all the criteria outright."
Hale expressed optimism that the move would make a big difference to those impacted by the train whistles.
"It'll help because it'll quiet it down. Getting rid of the train whistles will make it that much more peaceful around here," he said.
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