LOCOMOTIVE HORN EFFECTIVENESS AT OPERATING SPEEDS

One aspect of a study undertaken for Transport Canada--as a component of the joint government- and industry-funded Direction 2006 Highway-Railway Grade Crossing Research Program--is addressed. The study\u27s objective was to provide recommendations to ensure adequate warning for safety reasons and to address excessive loudness complaints from crews and from residents near tracks. A description is given of the field measurements and analyses undertaken to assess the influence of horn position on the effectiveness of the horn at operating speeds; an in-service assessment of alternative horns is also presented. Conclusions and recommendations are made to reposition horns in new-build locomotives and to add emergency-only or two-level horns at the front of some models of existing locomotives