Train talk coming back to city hall as Walkerville residents continue horn complaints
When Windsor, Ont.’s Environment, Transportation, and Public Safety Standing Committee meets next Wednesday, they’ll revisit the conversation around train horns keeping Walkerville residents up at night.
Ward 4 Councillor Mark McKenzie flagged the issue at a council meeting in January, asking if there was a way trains could be silenced between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m.
“A lot of people started calling me and I realized that wow, this was a bigger issue than I first thought,” McKenzie said.
He said a report from city staff has determined horns can’t go completely quiet – particularly at crossings where there are no lowering arms or flashing signals.
Protecting those Walkerville crossings would come with an estimated cost of about $3 million.
In 2022, the federal government had been accepting applications for funding under Transport Canada’s Rail Safety Improvement Plan, but Windsor missed the boat on putting in for that.
Still, McKenzie said he’s been trying to find a way to get Ottawa to chip in.
Ward 4 Councillor Mark McKenzie said a committee will discuss if and how to proceed with efforts to silence trains overnight in Walkerville. (Travis Fortnum/CTV News Windsor)
“I’ve spoken to MP Irek Kusmierczyk’s office, as well as the transportation minister Omar Alghabra and they’ve said that they’re going to try and see if maybe they can find some more funds,” he said.
CTV News reached out to Essex Terminal Railway for comment but no one was available to speak on the matter Wednesday.
Walkerville Residents Jim and Karen Carr said they know some have been complaining, but after living by the tracks for 38 years, they aren’t as upset.
“The noise don’t bother me at all,” said Jim. “Doesn’t interfere with TV or nothing.”
The couple, however, said they’ve noticed an increase in train traffic, saying they sometimes notice them rolling through the neighbourhood around 1:00 a.m., when they used to only hear them during the day.
“I just ignore it because it’s life,” Karen said.
McKenzie said next Wednesday’s committee meeting will discuss the feasibility of putting up taxpayer money to upgrade the crossings, which would then allow trains to roll through without honking.
He said they’ll also talk about whether or not to keep pushing the federal government for cash.
“I’m discouraged,” McKenzie said. “I am, but at the same time we’re moving forward. I’m not stopping.”
The Environment, Transportation, and Public Safety Standing Committee meets at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 29.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.