‘Quiet’ crossings almost ready

By Audrey Levine Staff Writer
   HILLSBOROUGH — The railroad quiet zones at the Beekman Lane and Auten Road rail crossings will be in effect on or about Nov. 18, as Norfolk Southern Rail line has completed the required safety improvements there.
   With the quiet zones established, trains will not use horns when crossing the roads, instead, horns mounted at the crossing will sound to warn drivers.
   To complete the safety improvements, according to Federal Railroad Administration regulations, Hillsborough was required to build safety medians, and add signage and safety road striping.
   Electronic safety improvements at the crossing mechanisms were also required to be completed by Norfolk Southern to ensure residents’ safety when trains are approaching.
   Because these improvements have all been completed at Beekman Lane and Auten Road, the trains will not have to sound the horn the required four times necessary for each train when approaching a crossing.
   These changes have also been completed at Roycefield Road, but will not go into affect until safety improvements have been completed at Valley Road, which does not lend itself to the use of a safety median.
   The township has been seeking to install a wayside horn – which points to the ground and sends out a radius of sound that reaches a tenth of the distance of the train’s own horn – at the Valley Road crossing instead.