Fines will be increasing for motorists caught ignoring crossing gates and flashing lights and illegally driving across railroad tracks in 21 Iowa locations called “quiet zones.”
Trains approaching railroad crossings in these zones are not required to sound the horn, in an effort to reduce noise in urban settings. Senator Tom Shipley of Nodaway said doubling the fine for illegally crossing train tracks in an Iowa “quiet zone” will hopefully be a deterrent.
“It’s just simply a matter of safety of being able to keep people from trying to beat the train because they didn’t hear the whistle,” Shipley said during Senate debate on the bill that governor signed into law a week ago.
Cities are able to install flashing lights and gates to establish a “quiet zone” at a railroad crossing, but Representative Derek Wulf of Hudson said it’s expensive. “This increase of penalties will help these communities stomach that potential cost which can range anywhere from $30,000 to $1 million,” Wulf said during House debate earlier this year.
The fine, starting July 1, will be $520 for illegally driving through a railroad crossing in a quiet zone when the warning lights are on. Three railroad crossings in the city of Hiawatha were recently designated as quiet zones where train horns don’t have to be activated to warn vehicles a train is approaching. Cedar Rapids officials are hoping to take similar steps for some railroad crossings, including one that’s near a 267-room hotel in downtown Cedar Rapids.
The following cities have “quiet” railroad crossings: Ames, Bellevue, Boone, Burlington, Creston, Denison, Fairfield, Hiawatha, Mason City, Mount Vernon, Nevada, Ogden, Ottumwa, Sergeant Bluff and Sioux City. Nevada and Hiawatha each have three. The rest have one according to federal records.