Passenger Trains > Changes To Cal Train Horns?

Today I heard a rumor that changes my be coming to the Cal Train locomotive horns. Can anyone confirm?

As a background, the CT F40s and cab cars originally came with K5LA horns (the Amtrak standard). Noise complaints resulted in 1)restricting air flow, 2) relocating the K5s, and 3) eliminating them in favor of Nathan new cast P2 horns mounted down by the locomotive pilots.

Between the elimination of the K5s and implementation of the consultant recommended P2 horns, Five Chime Consultants loaned Cal Train two standard SP P3R24 horns for testing. Cal Train said thanks but no thanks.

Any information would be appreciated.

Regards, Jim Evans, Five Chime Consultants

That would make me appreciate CalTrain a WHOLE lot more. They've got to step it up when it comes to road xings because of all the "accidents" in the past few weeks. I'd love to see that change and I'm sure everyone else would (in the railfan world, at least).

What CalTrain, and just about every other commuter outfit needs is a horn that can be heard while you have your ear buds in and your music cranked up.
A common thread in many of the recent incidents is the use of ear buds and music players. These folks just plain don't hear anything but their music.

Do a search for the Sounder Cab Car horns... those will rock your socks off and then some.

Macster Wrote:
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> Do a search for the Sounder Cab Car horns... those
> will rock your socks off and then some.

ACE's Cabcars will do the same... Any word on this yet? I'm curious.

If this happens, it will music to my ears!

Train horns are intended to intimidate people, keep them away from the tracks, make lots of noise. Not much else to say about that, they have a limited vocabulary. I'd go into my too loud rant or maybe my M5 beats all rant, but this seems like the wrong crowd.

"Sounder Cab Car horns", Googled this and didn't find anything obvious. Noted that this thread came up as #4. Maybe google has me figured out.

nickrgeorge Wrote:
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> That would make me appreciate CalTrain a WHOLE lot
> more. They've got to step it up when it comes to
> road xings because of all the "accidents" in the
> past few weeks.

I agree, however, 3 of those accidents were a Capitol Corridor train(twice same train), and #11 yesterday, and they have Amhorns(loud).

The is no way in hell the residents of Menlo Park, Atherton, and Palo Alto would allow Caltrain to have louder horns. If they all of a sudden switched to louder horns, it would be front page news of the Palo Alto Daily News and the residents would be up in arms. They would rather ban the trains through town and implement a "bike bridge" for commuters between San Antonio and Redwood City.

People in these communities have a different way of thinking than most of us in the real world. After a 2 teen suicides and 1 attempt by train last month the way the Palo Alto School District dealt with the problem was to tell the High School students that if they were stressed about school that they did not need to take their final exams and if they chose not take the exams that it would not affect their grades at all.

Quote of the month.

silagi Wrote:
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> ...
> People in these communities have a different way
> of thinking than most of us in the real world.
...

If people are intent on commiting "suicide by train", no volume of the horn is going to change their tactics.

Speaking of Palo Alto, Atherton and Menlo Pork, just found this on the Channel 11 website:
http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Mystery-Budget-Clause-Could-Derail-Bullet-Train-jw.html

some passing gas are louder than a caltrain horn!

Wish stupid Metrolink would get real about their K5's.
TAH