Judge Won’t Shush Train Whistles; Persuasion’s Now Placentia’s Tune

A Superior Court judge Thursday refused to stop the freight-train whistle blasts that have riled Placentia residents, but city officials said they have made progress in private negotiations for a permanent solution.

The question remains: Will the whistles go back to round-the-clock blasting this weekend?

Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Co., which began the whistle policy April 1 for safety reasons, agreed two weeks ago to stop the whistles during late-night hours--but only pending the court’s ruling.

The rail line’s spokeswoman, Lena Kent, said the company will announce today whether the night whistles will remain silent while negotiations with the city continue.

Placentia sought an injunction Thursday that would have stopped the whistle blasts except in emergencies. City lawyers cited a state law that gives whistle-blowing discretion to train engineers.

But Superior Court Judge Raymond J. Ikola said the law clearly indicates to him that he cannot interfere.

“I know this is a serious issue for the people of Placentia,” Ikola said. “But the court is not free to reach out and write a law that would expose [the rail line] to liability. I can’t wrest control of the train engineers from their employer.”

Afterward, Placentia special counsel Paul Hennessey said unless other negotiations are successful, the city will either appeal Ikola’s decision or take its case to the state Public Utilities Commission.

“The people of Placentia need their peace and quiet,” Hennessey said. “We’re not going to stop until the residents can get their sleep.”

Even as the lawyers battled in court, rail officials met with city leaders to seek a resolution.

Though the freight line has always blasted its whistle in other cities, it had voluntarily abided by Placentia’s 25-year ban, except in emergencies, whenever its trains approached the city’s 10 grade crossings. Anticipating a new federal crackdown on train safety, Burlington recently announced it intended to resume whistle blowing at each crossing. That decision prompted residents to rally and lobby City Hall for relief.

In negotiations with the city, Burlington officials said they want many guarantees of additional safety features at the Placentia crossings in exchange for silencing the whistles. Among them: wider medians at the crossings to make it more difficult for vehicles to dodge lowered gates; more secure gates; and more-vigorous enforcement against drivers who try to cross the tracks after the warning bell has sounded.

The city also offered to buy the rail line a $10-million, liability-insurance policy.

Meetings Thursday “were highly productive,” City Atty. Thomas F. Nixon said. “We’re convinced we’ll get this resolved.”