Port Moody British Columbia - Any Port Moody residents looking for relief from CP train whistles may be waiting a while.
 
On Tuesday, a delegation from CP appeared at City Hall to update council on the railway's operations, which included the topic of whistle blowing along the Ioco spur rail line.
 
While the city has received several complaints from residents regarding train whistle noise late at night and into the morning, CP's Mike LoVecchio told council the whistles are a safety device and under the railway operating rules, the noise is required at crossings unless there is whistle cessation.
 
"Understand the whistle is a safety device," he said.
 
LoVecchio also explained why the rail company is running the trains late at night, noting the cars that travel on the spur from the Imperial Oil site are part of a much larger supply chain that creates some variability in the schedule.
 
"Our desire is to provide a predictable service to our customers, but it's rarely going to be perfect," he said.
 
He suggested in recent months the service has been consistent, but added railroading is a "24/7 business" and from time to time there will be some variability.
 
According to rail rules, trains along the Ioco spur, which has seven crossing locations, should carry out a series of set blasts for 400 metres in advance of a crossing and continue to do so until the train has fully occupied the crossing.
 
The rules apply 24 hours a day for all at-grade public crossings.
 
The city has been considering a couple of options in dealing with the noise issue, including manual protection, which would see rail staff help perform the traffic control portion of the work.
 
But that option appears to be off the table, as LoVecchio explained railway rules would force the company to do manual protection at the crossings at all times during the day, which he said CP feels would compromise safety in the daytime.
 
Instead, he urged the city to follow the initial steps of whistle cessation and conduct an engineering report to figure out what might be required.
 
In May, a staff report noted one option would be a rail cessation program that consists of installing lights and a bell system for each approach to the various crossings.
 
The cost, according to the report, would be $150,000 to $200,000 per location.
 
Following the delegation, Mayor Mike Clay said it's good to have a discussion and keep the dialogue open between the city and the rail company.
 
"The sad fact of the matter is they generally fall back on saying "We're a 24/7 operation and we need to keep moving freight", but if you're not talking you're not going to get anything," he said.
 
Clay is also hoping CP will continue the dialogue with the city and join the municipality's CP advisory committee, which is meant to provide a forum for the exchange of information between the two sides.

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