’Quiet zones’ good for quality of life

Frank Tacopino, Conover Drive
   I am not a single-issue voter, and I don’t vote for single-issue candidates. But if I had to name one issue most important to my quality of life, and to the quality of life of my neighbors who live near the Norfolk Southern railroad crossings between Beekman Lane and Roycefield Road, it would be the Railroad Quiet Zones.
   When we moved to Hillsborough 10 years ago, train horns blew irregularly, and at a lower volume, and railroad traffic was nowhere near what it is today. The real nightmare began in June of 2005 when the Federal Railway Administration changed its regulations, requiring train horns to be sounded several times at each crossing, for a duration of 15 to 20 seconds, and at a volume level no lower than 96 decibels!
   At the same time, the FRA provided communities with the opportunity to silence train horns by establishing “quiet zones.” There are many hundreds of railroad crossings in New Jersey, but only three municipalities with the foresight to take advantage of this program — Hillsborough is one of them.
   I applaud Mayor Anthony Ferrera and the Hillsborough Township Committee for being committed to the quality of life of Hillsborough’s residents — not just in my neighborhood, but in the entire town. That’s why I will be voting for Anthony Ferrera and running mate Gloria McCauley in next month’s election.