Dear Council:
Train horn noise has gone from being a bearable irritant to a major problem with the dramatic increase in the number of trains in the system. Most residents living near the tracks were aware of and accepted the noise impact of 40 trains per day. Milestones 1980s (caltrain.com)
But the number of trains has increased dramatically over the years and future plans call for an even greater number of daily trains. Electrification will raise Caltrain's operating costs 33% - Palo Alto Daily Post (padailypost.com) Caltrain projects running 116 to 168 trains per day in the near future. These figures do not include the projected 40-60 daily HSR trains that might one day run on the tracks.
An increase in noise pollution of this magnitude is simply not acceptable and something needs to be done to reduce this horrific impact. In a normal world, the entity responsible for increasing noise pollution would be responsible for reducing the impact. Unfortunately, Caltrain has consistently ignored the negative environmental impacts of their service.
The time has come for Menlo Park to take immediate action to eliminate train horn noise. Atherton has shown that it is possible to solve the problem at reasonable cost. Please, take this opportunity to act!
Thank You,
Martin Mazner 183 Stone Pine Lane Menlo Park, CA
