It looks like trains will continue to sound their horns in northern Palm Beach County for at least a few more months 鈥� far longer than officials had hoped.
Officials in some north county cities before the end of 2024 but in the new year are still scrambling to win approval.
Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter and Riviera Beach, which together account for 16 of north county鈥檚 26 crossings, have been told by federal officials that the $3.5 million in federal money they have poured into intersection safety along the Florida East Coast Railway tracks is not yet enough.
Tequesta is working to upgrade its lone crossing at Tequesta Drive before applying for quiet zone status to the .
Alone among north county cities, Lake Park refused to pursue quiet zones last February and officials haven鈥檛 discussed the topic since. That means train horns will continue to blare approaching Northlake Boulevard and Park Avenue.
West Palm Beach is the only north county city with an established quiet zone. Half the city remained after federal railway officials but the north end of West Palm Beach met the standards last year to quiet trains at the remaining six crossings.
Deadly collisions
North county officials began working on quiet zones before between West Palm Beach and Orlando in . The new service increased noise levels for people living near the tracks as each train must sound its horn three times before crossing an intersection.
It took south county five years to get quiet zones, which started in 2018, around the same time Brightline began service between Miami and West Palm Beach.
Despite the safety features designed to keep motorists and pedestrians off the tracks at intersections, Brightline trains, which share the tracks with freight trains, have been involved in several fatal collisions after silencing horns.
The number of collisions has some residents referring to the Miami-to-Orlando train service as 鈥淔rightline.鈥�
On Sept. 27, a attempted to drive around a lowered safety arm at Southeast 23rd Avenue in Boynton Beach. He died when a Brightline train struck his car.
Another eye-opening crash involved a Delray Beach fire truck, struck by a Brightline train as it drove past the blinking crossing gates on Dec. 28. The crash destroyed the $900,000 fire truck and injured three firefighters and 12 train passengers. A new fire truck about $2 million.
Even with horns sounding, north county has had its share of crashes.
, a Brightline train struck and killed 77-year-old driver . A sign near Burns Roads already is up, saying 鈥淣o train horn.鈥�
Duane Matheson, 69, of North Palm Beach on Aug. 8.
Timing not certain
Riviera Beach had estimated its quiet zone would be active last spring. Now, city officials say they are hoping for late spring 2025.
Palm Beach Gardens officials told the City Council last year if all went well, quiet zones could be in place by November. Now the city is spending about $100,000 to install more safety features, City Engineer Todd Engle said.
since last year but even now has 鈥渘o timetable on the completion,鈥� said Shawn Reed, director of community relations.
A federal railroad inspector found six items needing the town鈥檚 attention. Among them:
- Replacing the faded 鈥淒o not stop on tracks鈥� sign on East Riverside Drive.
- Correcting and replacing misaligned or non-functioning flashing warning beacons on Donald Ross Road, Frederick Small Road and Toney Penna Drive.
- Refreshing the degraded stop line and on Center Street.
Reed could not say how much Jupiter is paying for the upgrades.
Jupiter Mayor Jim Kuretski said he would rather sacrifice ear drums than lives. He said he is glad federal officials are prioritizing safety instead of continuing to overlook crucial intersection maintenance.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e stepping up, making sure that everything is in as good of a condition as it can be to protect public safety,鈥� Kuretski said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 nothing more important than that.鈥�
Residents, however, are getting antsy 鈥� and so are some city officials.
鈥淲e鈥檙e anxiously awaiting the FRA鈥檚 response,鈥� said Marcie Tinsley, a Palm Beach Gardens City Council member.
Tinsley, who is running for reelection in March, said she thinks that north county quiet zones are taking much longer than south county鈥檚.
City residents often ask about quiet zones, Tinsley said, and she understands their frustration because she hears the train horns from her home in Evergrene.
But not everyone is frustrated by the delays.
It鈥檚 not that unusual for the back and forth with federal officials to be time-consuming, said Jim Kovalsky, president of the Florida East Coast Railway Society, a for train enthusiasts.
鈥淓verything dealing with the government is going to take longer than you expect it to,鈥� Kovalsky said.
This story was originally published by , a SA国际传谋 News partner.
