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<br />City Council/LRC <br />Special Meeting Minutes <br />June 9, 2008 <br />Page 3 of 4 <br /> <br />The Federal Railroad Administration Rules require trains to sound horns when <br />approaching all grade crossings. A Quiet Zone is an area at least % mile long <br />where the railroad operators are exempt from sounding horns. The crossing <br />must be as safe without the train horn as it is with it. <br /> <br />RTD's Responsible Rail Amendment was adopted October 16,2007. It commits <br />RTD to assisting local jurisdictions in their Quiet Zone application process. RTD <br />will work with the railroads and local communities to address the noise concerns <br />of residents by: developing a Work Plan, including approach and timeframes; <br />developing cost estimates for each crossing; identifying available financial <br />resources and keeping the public informed. <br /> <br />RTD's role is to facilitate the Quiet Zone application process by assisting local <br />jurisdictions. RTD will help coordinate the necessary parties throughout the <br />application process. RTD's responsibilities include, but are not limited to: <br />inventory of grade crossings, cost estimates, design and construction of safety <br />measures and required noise mitigation. As RTD cannot request Quiet Zones, <br />those requests must come from local jurisdictions. <br /> <br />Funding - RTD is committing to funding grade crossing improvements for safety <br />improvements and noise mitigation required due to impacts from corridor <br />projects. Local Jurisdictions are required to provide additional funding for <br />improvements necessary for Quiet Zone designation. <br /> <br />Accomplishments to Date: <br /> <br />. Quiet Zone Workshop held in local jurisdictions on March 4, 2008 <br />. Inventory information gathered for each grade crossing along each <br />corridor. <br />. Diagnostic review templates completed for each crossing <br />. Noise and safety analyses on-going for each corridor <br />. On-going outreach to local governments <br />. Completed Quiet Zone Fact Sheet <br /> <br />The next steps will be diagnostic review on July 1 ih and August 13th. RTD will <br />meet with representatives from the Federal Railroad Administration Commission <br />to present their proposal. Public meetings will be scheduled to gather comments <br />and distribute objective information. <br /> <br />Council/Commission Comments - There was discussion relative to the cost <br />estimates for crossings on grade separations. It was noted the first Quiet Zone <br />was established in Commerce City along Highway US 85. <br /> <br />Railroad Negotiations <br />