Milton residents hope for reprieve from ‘horrible’ overnight train whistles

Thestar.com
May 17, 2021

A “deafening” sound has been keeping many rural Milton residents awake at night.

For about a year, Kyle Cleland and his wife have had to endure noisy whistles from CP freight trains as they approach the road crossing at First Line Nassagaweya and Number 3 Sideroad in Campbellville in the early morning hours.

“It was a little bit shocking,” Cleland said the first time the whistle blasts awoke them some time after midnight. It came to a surprise to the couple -- who are expecting a baby in June -- because prior to their move last year they were told that the trains only run two to three times per week.

Long-time area resident Douglas Miller said the railroad traffic has got busier in the past years since the tracks were purchased and upgraded by CP.

There are now up to three overnight trains with no schedule -- sometimes passing in quick succession and other times staggered -- that wake his family up most nights, he said, even though he has insulated his house and keeps the windows closed year-round.

“It actually shakes the house and it's very loud,” said the Miller Tree business owner of the disturbance. “Some of the (operators) honk for probably 500 metres coming up to the stop and they don't stop the horn. There's no sleeping through it.”

He said he’s concerned about his three young kids, who are already experiencing so many disruptions amid the pandemic.

The problem doesn’t affect only residents close to the tracks, as the noise pollution also travels kilometres away, according to Coun. Colin Best.

“I can hear them… and I’m over at Tremaine Road,” he said.

The Ward 1 regional councillor moved a successful motion at a council meeting last month for the town to start the process to silence the trains.

As mandated by Transport Canada, the town has to retain a technical expert to assess the level crossing for deficiencies and make recommendations for improvement to bring the crossing to a safety standard for the whistling to stop.

The cost for the technical review will come in at about $30,000. At the suggestion of Mayor Gord Krantz, staff has also been directed to ask CP to shoulder some of the cost.

Best said that the “outdated” regulation is unnecessary. Specifically, this particular crossing is fully signalized with warning gates as safety measures to alert road users of approaching trains.

A spokesperson with CP said in an email that "freight trains operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year to meet the needs of customers and the Canadian economy." On its website, the company said that the whistling rules apply even if a crossing is equipped with flashing lights, bells, and crossing gates, as regulated by Transport Canada.

But Milton has dealt with similar issues in the past.

Back in the ‘90s the town banned GO trains from blowing whistles along the Milton line from Campbellville to the Mississauga boundary, Best said. In some crossings, the town is paying about $600 to cover the annual insurance costs from the added liability of stopping the whistles.

Miller said he doesn’t mind the trains.

“It’s just that the horn has become so disruptive,” he said.

Derek Walter is one of the owners of Happily Ever Esther Farm Sanctuary in the area, whose occupants include Esther the Wonder Pig. Describing the horn blaring as “horrible,” he said they all had to learn to adapt to the situation.

Still, missing a good night’s sleep could lead to not having a productive day, he said.

He echoed the hopes of others: “It’d be lovely if they weren’t whistling through the night.”

The matter will be discussed further at council once the technical review is complete.