"No train horn" in quiet zones

Q: Dawson Stoops' nearly 12-mile, year-round bicycle commutes between his Mercer Island home and his Lower Queen Anne workplace (he's co-founder of a software company) take him along Alaskan Way on Seattle's downtown waterfront, and curiously enough, past a couple of "No Train Horn" signs tacked on railroad-crossing signs at Vine Street, across the street from the Edgewater Hotel at Pier 67.

"This all seems odd and confusing to me," said Stoops. "I assume this means that there is a train crossing, and the train will not use its horn. Is this correct?

"If yes, why would the train not use its horn? I really wonder how safe it is for trains to not sound their horn."

A: A designated 24-hour "quiet zone" is in place along the central waterfront, particularly for railroad-street crossings between Wall and Broad streets, near Alaskan Way. Trains are not supposed to sound their horns or whistles along that stretch, except to prevent collisions that cannot otherwise be avoided, says Eric Widstrand, the Seattle Department of Transportation's traffic-operations manager.

"No Train Horn" signs were installed by the city to comply with the Federal Railroad Administration's Waterfront Quiet Zone requirements, he said. The quiet zone was established in the 1980s as part of a revitalization project along the waterfront, and says Widstrand, it is one of only three locations in the state where trains are discouraged from sounding their horns as they cross public roadways.

For safety, there are railroad-crossing gates, warning bells and signals, and pavement markings near those "No Train Horn" signs, he pointed out. Those tracks are heavily used, by BNSF's mainline freight trains, by Sound Transit's commuter trains and by Amtrak passenger trains.

If the quiet zone is intended to benefit guests at the Edgewater Hotel, its success may not be absolute. On a travel guide Web site, one user posted this comment: "The hotel has a great location," [particularly for folks taking a cruise ship from the pier next door]. But, added the New Jersey visitor who posted the comment a couple of months ago, "If you plan on sleeping [here], forget it. There is a ... train which runs outside the windows, which makes it impossible to get a night's rest. Not much fun getting waked up every hour or two with the sound of screeching tracks and train horns."

Q: North Bend resident Randy Harmon commutes to downtown Seattle almost daily, traveling Interstate 90, so he's used to noticing lighted freeway signs temporarily prohibiting flammable loads through I-90's Mount Baker Tunnel and the Mercer Island Lid, generally because fire-suppression systems are being worked on or inspected.

So why does it seem that at least once a week, Harmon says, he notices gasoline trucks with "1203" hazard signs displayed going through the tunnel? "Aren't they breaking the law?" he asked.

A: Well, it is illegal for a tanker truck carrying a load of gasoline to travel through the tunnel when there's a ban and the sign is illuminated, and State Patrol spokesman Robert Calkins says violators could be issued a $124 ticket for "failure to obey a restrictive sign."

Truckers carrying hazardous materials are required to display placards on the vehicle indicating what they're carrying. The "1203" placard stands for gas.

But if the tanker was empty, and the driver simply failed to change the placard, the State Patrol probably would not issue a citation in that case, Calkins said. An empty gasoline tanker might contain some fumes, but Calkins says the general thinking is that the real risk comes from several thousand gallons of gasoline.

"It's technically possible the tanker was making a return trip while empty and was not deliberately flouting the law," he said.

Still, Calkins says he'll alert state troopers to keep a closer eye on the tunnel when there's a ban.

While it's not unusual for the state Department of Ttansportation to issue bans on flammable loads through the tunnel, it's not every week. However, bans can last several days. Earlier this month, for instance, there was a ban against flammable loads in place from Oct. 6 through Oct. 15.