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<br />Quiet Zone Evaluation 13 <br />New Brighton, Minnesota <br />e. Wayside Horns <br />The implementation of a Quiet Zone is one method of eliminating a train horn at a <br />rail crossing. Another method of potentially eliminating train horns is through the <br />installation of wayside horns at a crossing. Wayside horns are mounted on either <br />side of a rail crossing and face down the road at oncoming traffic. The wayside horn <br />is sounded instead of the train horn when a train approaches. While the train horn <br />is eliminated, the noise associated with a rail crossing is not. Instead, the noise <br />becomes localized and results in an overall reduction in noise in an area. <br /> <br />The reduction in noise is achieved through the directional nature of the wayside <br />horn. The sound is concentrated down the road rather than throughout the <br />surrounding area. See Figure 3 for a concept comparison of noise between a <br />standard train horn and a typical wayside horn. As shown, a train horn has a greater <br />impact area and is louder in comparison with a typical wayside horn system. <br /> <br /> <br />Figure 3 – Wayside Horn v Train Horn Decibel Map <br />