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Statement of Need: This rule is required by Public Law 103-440. The Act requires the use of locomotive horns at every public highway-rail grade crossing but gives FRA the authority to make reasonable exceptions. Studies have shown that highway-rail grade crossing accidents increase 67 percent at gated crossings where whistle bans are in effect. Congress amended this law in 1996 to require that FRA take into account the interest of the communities with pre-existing restrictions on locomotive horns. In 2000, Congress prohibited FRA from issuing a rule before July 1, 2001.

Summary of the Legal Basis: Issuance of this rule is required by 49 USC 20153.

Alternatives: There was no alternative to initiating this rulemaking, as it is required by statute. However, the rule would provide a list of supplementary measures that FRA has determined to be effective substitutes for the locomotive horn in the prevention of highway-rail grade crossing casualties. The rule would also allow for whistle bans if there are alternative safety measures that compensate for the lack of a locomotive horn.

Anticipated Costs and Benefits: The problems considered by this rule are collisions and their associated casualties and property damage involving vehicles on public highways and trains at whistle-ban grade crossings. The costs of this rulemaking will be incurred predominantly by communities. The most significant impacts from this rule will be on about 260 governmental jurisdictions whose communities have whistle bans in place. However, there are also costs to railroads and to the Federal Government. Approximately 640 small railroads would be minimally impacted by train horn sound level testing requirements contained in this rule. In adddition, some small businesses that operate along or near rail lines that currently have whistle bans in place could be moderately impacted.

Risks: As a result of studies conducted on accident rates at crossings at which locomotive horns are banned, FRA has concluded that such crossings generally have a higher risk of accident than crossings at which horns are sounded. FRA has found that the risk of a collision was 67 percent greater at crossings equipped with automatic gates and flashing lights than at similarly equipped crossings across the nation without bans. Congress required that FRA issue a regulation requiring the sounding of locomotive horns at all public highway rail grade crossings. However, an exception to the requirement is permissible in circumstances in which there is not a significant risk of loss of life or serious personal injury, use of the locomotive horn is impractical, or supplementary safety measures fully compensate for the absence of the warning provided by the horn. Issuance of the rule would lower the increased collision risk associated with crossings at which no locomotive horns are sounded.