Noise barriers and overpasses: how to make living with trains more bearable
Proximity Issues aims to tackle noise and safety problems that come from living near railways
A city councillor in Quebec is trying to get B.C. municipalities to sign on to a plan to deal with noise and danger issues stemming from railways crisscrossing through Canadian cities.
"It's a Canadian problem," said Westmount councillor Cynthia Lulham.
"Canada was built around railways, railways built the communities, so they run through the middle of many communities. But today, a lot of the land that's left to develop in many urban areas is around railways."
Lulham says the issue is that the land around railways used to be primarily industrial, but today it's often used for commercial and even residential space.
"The cities zone it residential but don't put any caveats on it, and then developers come along, they're just in it to make a buck," she said.
"They build something quick and fast and they're gone."
New rules recommended
That, she says, is where the problems begin. Homes that are too close to train tracks have to deal with noise and vibrations.
More serious are safety concerns that stem from railways going through spaces people like to walk, such as in Terrace, B.C., where two people were killed in five days crossing train tracks that divide the city.
Working with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and the Railway Association of Canada, Lulham helped develop a program called Proximity Issues, which advises cities on what requirements and considerations should be in place when building around railways.
Advice includes putting in noise barriers between train tracks and housing, and working with other levels of government to build over or underpasses for pedestrians to bypass walking across train tracks.
So far, she says, close to 75 municipalities have adopted the guidelines — but not very many in British Columbia.
Lulham has been appearing at local government meetings in B.C. to try and get buy-in from local leaders and, she hopes, the province itself.
She says her message is simple.
"You can develop in proximity to railways, but you have to do it differently."
To hear the full story, click on the audio labeled: Quebec city councillour wants to help B.C. cities solve train problems.