Residents in a Guelph neighbourhood will finally get a good night’s rest.
For the past few weeks they’ve been kept awake by loud train horns blaring throughout the night.
Many said the long and loud blasts would go off between midnight and 6 a.m. in the area of Edinburgh Road North and Paisley Street.
After a public outcry, protests and pressure from local politicians, CN Rail has agreed to stop using horns overnight.
Alexandre Boulé, CN’s senior media relations and public affairs advisor, sent an email to CTV Kitchener that reads, in part:
“CN apologizes to residents of the City of Guelph for the inconveniences and frustrations caused by recent changes in its operations. CN had to modify its operational schedule during summer months until the work to improve the quality, safety and efficiency of the current rail infrastructure that CN inherited when taking over operations in late 2018 is completed. As a result of the feedback from the community received, CN will be taking immediate action to mitigate the impact on local residents.”
Starting Tuesday, CN says there will be “manual safety measures at crossings.”
That means people, employed by CN, will be set up at crossings to manage the railway’s operations and direct traffic.
While this is a temporary fix, Mayor Cam Guthrie calls it a “big win” for the community.
He says he’s meeting with CN on Wednesday to discuss the issue.
On Monday night residents staged a protest about the disruptive horns.
People - including children - stood near the tracks, preventing the trains from continuing through the community.
One of those protestors says they only went on the tracks after the train had stopped to discuss their concerns with the engineer.
Guthrie is asking residents to stay off the tracks as they can pose a safety issue.
