ED TAYLOR

The commission assigned to advise the city council on the expenditure of at least $3 million to create “quiet zones” for the planned 32 additional high speed trains, that could be zooming through the city courtesy of All Aboard Florida as soon as late next year, expressed reservations about recommending such an expenditure during their past meeting.  The quiet zones would be required by the Federal Railroad Administration in order to prevent the four warning horns required at each railroad crossing mandated by the same agency.  There are six crossings within a 2.5 mile stretch within the city.  Regulations require the blasts to be at least 96 decibels and allow sounds up to 110 decibels.

The Vero Beach City Council has recently petitioned the State of Florida for funds to assist the city in making the necessary adjustments to make the six crossings quiet zone compatible.  The trains are expected to travel through Vero Beach at speeds estimated at 110 miles per hour with no planned stops on the Treasure Coast.  The planned service promoted by All Aboard Florida is three hour rail transportation between Miami to Orlando.

Previous meetings of the advisory panel seemed to focus on noise abatement, however during the most recent meeting, the panel expressed concerns about the safety of motorists, pedestrians and trespassers. Commission Chairman Ken Daige told the membership that since the train service is scheduled to commence next year, “we are dealing with a situation that is extremely time sensitive”.

Members of the commission expressed concern as to whether or not All Aboard Florida, described as a sister company to Florida East Coast Railroad, by Russell Roberts, a vice president of Florida East Coast Industries which owns the proposed passenger railroad, will actually become a viable transportation service since no work has been done as yet to upgrade the infrastructure to accommodate the high speed trains. Roberts has stated that they are still in the process of determining who will manufacture the trains for the proposed project.

Commissioner Brian Heady asked Roberts for a business model to determine if the project was feasible prior to authorizing any citizen tax dollars toward whatever effect the project might have on Vero Beach.  Roberts refused to provide any numbers to the commission stating that All Aboard Florida and Florida East Coast Railroad have been privately held corporations since 2007 and, as such, are not required to disclose such information to public entities.  Roberts did state that his company would provide safety fencing during their modifications of the tracks but would not specify the type of fencing or whether or not the proposed fencing would provide any type of noise abatement.

Commissioner Kiernan Moylan told his fellow members that, “quiet zones may not be in the best interest of the city,” and that safety should be the primary concern for the citizens of Vero Beach.  It was also noted that the county has yet to make a decision regarding any proposed quiet zones. Federal regulations requiring warning blasts at least a quarter of a mile before approaching a railroad traffic crossing could require the warning blasts within the city even if the quiet zones are implemented.

Chairman Daige made a motion for an engineering study to determine the likely impact All Aboard Florida’s high speed trains will have on the city, but later withdrew the motion after City Manager Jim O’Conner stated that he “hated to authorize engineering something we really don’t understand”.  “We don’t know how much of a nuisance it will be or how it will affect us.”

O’Conner also expressed a desire to see the proposed railroad’s business model to see if their figures are accurate and suggested that based upon the costs and risks involved it might be better for the city to take a “wait and see” approach.  “Reactionary may be the best way of proceeding,” the city manager said. “The county is also looking at how to deal with quiet zones and they are taking a ‘wait and see’ attitude as well.”

Roberts told the commission that the quiet zones could be established after the trains start running next year but it would be more cost effective for the city to make the quiet zone modifications while his company is making the necessary modifications to the railroad track infrastructure in order to accommodate their trains.

Roberts was asked by the commission to attend the next meeting of the advisory panel with more information on the protective fencing All Aboard Florida plans to erect within the city.