City Council meetings, downtown festivals, Chamber of Commerce events and church services have all been disrupted by it.
Now, one Brenham resident says it's time to silence the ear-piercing blare of train horns passing through the city.
Carol Doersom said she has collected nearly 300 signatures on a petition in hopes that it will encourage the City Council to establish a quiet zone in the city, which would prevent trains from blaring their horns at crossings. But the quiet zones could only be enacted if other safety measures are put in place.
Public Works Director Doug Baker said the idea isn't a new one, but the improvements needed would cost at least $250,000.
The necessary projects didn't make it into the city's most recent budget because of the economy, he said.
Doersom, who lives near one of the city's nine railroad crossings, said the track stretches through town for three miles and affects schools, businesses and homes.
The necessary alterations to the crossings would depend on how quiet residents want it, Baker said. The Federal Railroad Administration requires added safety measures to offset the lack of warning that the train's horn provides at crossings.
Besides closing the train crossings to vehicle traffic, city officials could mount wayside horns about 15 feet above the ground. The $90,000 horns blare a sound toward the street instead of having the horn on the train as it travels into town, Baker said.
Another option is the installation of crossing gates on each side of the track, which would cost about $300,000 per crossing, he said.
Since the quiet zone rule was adopted in 2005, 33 such zones have been established in Texas, including in San Antonio, Austin, Fort Worth and Houston, according to the Federal Railroad Admini-stration.
In quiet zones, train engineers can still sound the horn in emergency situations, such as the presence of a vehicle or person on the tracks, and the horn can be sounded to warn railroad employees or contractors working on the tracks.
Baker said city officials have talked about the idea and remain interested, but funding has been a concern.
"I have always gotten the impressions from the several discussions I've had with the City Council that they are eager to do this project when the funding is available," he said.
Lete Phillips, a board member for the Chamber of Commerce, said she's helping collect signatures for the petition. She said she's sat through her share of meetings and events that have been interrupted by the trains' horns.
"We have many festivities in downtown Brenham, which is beautiful and very well attended. We have problems when we are doing that because, here comes the train, and you cannot enjoy the conversation, or if you are in downtown listening to live music ... the train is so loud it's just very disturbing," she said. "I'm telling you sometimes it's unbearable."
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