Trains in Oldham County (Louisville, Covington: broker, houses, buyers)

[Delaney72]

My family and I just moved to Oldham Cnty from the Northeast. While I saw the train tracks when we were looking for homes I had no idea they were used as frquently as they are. Back where we come from there are no running trains so we didn't even know what to consider. Well we bought a house about a mile from the train tracks which wouldn't be so bad except that there are about 4-5 crossings within a few miles of us. Everytime the train crosses it blows it's whistle. It's crazy loud. We've been here 2 weeks and I have not slept through the night yet. Maybe this is a really dumb question, but isn't there some sort of noise ordinace after a certain time. I get that a train has to "warn" vehicles it's coming but at 1, 2,3,4 in the morning? Do you ever get used to it? If I had any idea it would be this frequent and this loud I wouldn't have bought this house. Which makes me nervous for when we may have to sell. If I don't like it, will others?

[johnsonkk]

The good news is that since you weren't aware of the train noise, neither will future home buyers. Chances are that your neighbors won't have many comments since they are 'used' the noise.

Depending on the a lot of variables, an option may be to further soundproof your home. At least you know what the issue is (loud whistles) vs. low airline or interstate rumble.

[tomocox]

Originally Posted by Delaney72

My family and I just moved to Oldham Cnty from the Northeast. While I saw the train tracks when we were looking for homes I had no idea they were used as frquently as they are. Back where we come from there are no running trains so we didn't even know what to consider. Well we bought a house about a mile from the train tracks which wouldn't be so bad except that there are about 4-5 crossings within a few miles of us. Everytime the train crosses it blows it's whistle. It's crazy loud. We've been here 2 weeks and I have not slept through the night yet. Maybe this is a really dumb question, but isn't there some sort of noise ordinace after a certain time. I get that a train has to "warn" vehicles it's coming but at 1, 2,3,4 in the morning? Do you ever get used to it? If I had any idea it would be this frequent and this loud I wouldn't have bought this house. Which makes me nervous for when we may have to sell. If I don't like it, will others?

I do not know of the circumstances of your purchase other than what you have written here. If you had a Realtor, then shame on the Realtor for not pointing out the train noise situation. I have fought to the point of being a public nusiance to make certain the old quiet zone of LaGrange remained intact. Pewee Valley and Crestwood are both in various stages of applying for quiet zones. I won't get politically rambunctious here, but good luck.

You asked about noise ordinances. Well, quite the oddity. There are muffler rules, there are party rules, and there are other noise ordinances, but when it comes to trains, according to the Federal Railway Administration (FRA), the louder the better.

If you want a more personal review of your situation, send me a private mail and we'll see what your options are.

[mdawg]

Originally Posted by Delaney72

My family and I just moved to Oldham Cnty from the Northeast. While I saw the train tracks when we were looking for homes I had no idea they were used as frquently as they are. Back where we come from there are no running trains so we didn't even know what to consider. Well we bought a house about a mile from the train tracks which wouldn't be so bad except that there are about 4-5 crossings within a few miles of us. Everytime the train crosses it blows it's whistle. It's crazy loud. We've been here 2 weeks and I have not slept through the night yet. Maybe this is a really dumb question, but isn't there some sort of noise ordinace after a certain time. I get that a train has to "warn" vehicles it's coming but at 1, 2,3,4 in the morning? Do you ever get used to it? If I had any idea it would be this frequent and this loud I wouldn't have bought this house. Which makes me nervous for when we may have to sell. If I don't like it, will others?

I lived near the train tracks in Pewee Valley, probably about a mile away also. When we moved here from Ohio, the trains would wake us up all the time, but you will get used to it after a month or so. I wouldn't worry about it. I also thought that the train tracks were barely used, but I should have known better since the Ford Kentucky Truck Plant is right next to Pewee Valley. It honestly will just become another part of your life and you will adjust quickly, and in no time you won't notice the horns at all.

[Delaney72]

Originally Posted by tomocox

I do not know of the circumstances of your purchase other than what you have written here. If you had a Realtor, then shame on the Realtor for not pointing out the train noise situation. I have fought to the point of being a public nusiance to make certain the old quiet zone of LaGrange remained intact. Pewee Valley and Crestwood are both in various stages of applying for quiet zones. I won't get politically rambunctious here, but good luck.

You asked about noise ordinances. Well, quite the oddity. There are muffler rules, there are party rules, and there are other noise ordinances, but when it comes to trains, according to the Federal Railway Administration (FRA), the louder the better.

If you want a more personal review of your situation, send me a private mail and we'll see what your options are.

Thanks for the input. Our realtor did mention that the tracks are still used quite frequently, but didn't mention the horns. He was fabulous otherwise so I'd like to believe there was no purposeful negligance on his part. We can't really hear the trains themselves, it's the horns and primarily at night. We are in Darby Pointe - up at the highest point in the subdivision. I think the noise just carries. My husband seems to think the noise is coming from Crestwood and not the tracks down at the bottom of the development. I don't know, I just know it's annoying. Developments down here, compared to New England, are set up so differently. They all seem to back right up the the highway, they're right on train tracks, the houses are on top of each other or they're down the road from some sort of correctional facility. Tomocox, how would I go about contacting you privately? I'd be curious to learn about the proposed quiet zones.

[mdawg]

Originally Posted by Delaney72

Developments down here, compared to New England, are set up so differently. They all seem to back right up the the highway, they're right on train tracks, the houses are on top of each other or they're down the road from some sort of correctional facility. Tomocox, how would I go about contacting you privately? I'd be curious to learn about the proposed quiet zones.

I wouldn't say that is how most are, but land near highways and correctional institutions is probably cheaper, so that is why developers buy it and convert it into a subdivision. The majority of Oldham Co, and Jeff. Co. subdivisions however, are not near interstates or correctional facilities.

Anyway, in order to have a quiet zone, it has to be at least 1/2 mile long, have at least 1 public crossing, and crossings have to have either flashing lights and a gate, and sometimes horns, a one way crossing, medians, and 4 gate systems have to be put in to meet the new quiet zone rules created a few years ago. There are only 7 quiet zones in Kentucky. 4 are in Louisville, 1 is in Anchorage, 1 is in La Grange, and 1 is in Covington. They aren't that easy to create, your local government has to be willing to work with the company that owns the railroad and the state to assess the crossings in the area and decide if a quiet zone is possible.

Here's a good site explaining it all...

http://www.fra.dot.gov/downloads/Pub..._FactSheet.pdf

[johnsonkk]

I particularily enjoyed reading that Chicago is exempt when Florida's exemption was overturned based on too many fatalities, yet Chicago's whistle ban somehow remains.

"[SIZE=3][SIZE=3]The Chicago area’s numerous pre-existing whistle bans are temporarily excepted from compliance with the rule because of their unique experience with this issue. After an ongoing collaborative review is completed, the FRA will determine the final status of the Chicago pre-rule quiet zones."
[/SIZE][/SIZE]

[Delaney72]

mdawg, Thanks for the info. We had a long weekend to find a home back in December and the market had shrunk considerably since Sept. when we were down for the relocation "check us out" weekend. It seemed like every development we went to was near a highway or relatively close to train tracks. Liked one house in Crestwood, but it backed up to a church parking lot and overlooked a growing shopping area. Zoning is just much different here than what we were used to. Anyway, my husband kind of likes the train horn - it's a piece of Americana he says. Thanks again.

[tomocox]

Originally Posted by Delaney72

Thanks for the input. Our realtor did mention that the tracks are still used quite frequently, but didn't mention the horns. He was fabulous otherwise so I'd like to believe there was no purposeful negligance on his part. We can't really hear the trains themselves, it's the horns and primarily at night. We are in Darby Pointe - up at the highest point in the subdivision. I think the noise just carries. My husband seems to think the noise is coming from Crestwood and not the tracks down at the bottom of the development. I don't know, I just know it's annoying. Developments down here, compared to New England, are set up so differently. They all seem to back right up the the highway, they're right on train tracks, the houses are on top of each other or they're down the road from some sort of correctional facility. Tomocox, how would I go about contacting you privately? I'd be curious to learn about the proposed quiet zones.

Knowledge of where you live is a great help. You likely won't get much chance for a quiet zone in the Darby Point area. There are simply too many unprotected crossings, including those that you might not think about. In order to qualify for a "quiet zone" crossing, there must be several pieces of safety equipment at each crossing including gates, highway dividers, and even train speed limits.

I live in Briar Hill, and there are certain winter nights that I can hear a train as it travels between Westport Road and Crestwood Station Shopping Center. There is a quiet zone being applied to include the crossings at Westport Rd to at least the Central Ave crossing.

In response to how you can connect me, I am the principal broker of the RE/MAX office in Crestwood. 502-241-8435

[midwestmom]

I'm surprised that you can hear it so loudly when you're a mile away - here I was thinking for our next place that that might be far enough to ignore it. If it makes you feel better we're across the street from a double track with one crossing near us and 2 that are 3-4 blocks away in either direction. There's one driver that holds the horn down steady for all 3 crossings, generally between 1 and 3 am.
We have gotten used to it enough for sleeping (opp side of house) but are constantly pausing DVD's because there's no way you can hear them, esp if there are 2 trains passing (ea. one has to sound their horns). Some days are relatively quiet with 6-7 trains, other days are major freight days with 20-25 (I hate those days). Looks like we'll have to move more than a mile if you're still being bugged by them.