Train horn

[Terrontress]

Does anyone know if there are restrictions on trains sounding their horns at certain times of the day / night, as ther are with cars?

Particularly through residential areas?

[Thomas J Stamp]

I wouldnt think so. They are only to be used approaching Level Crossings, Stations or if the driver sees someone on or near the track, all safety situations to alert people of the approach of a train.

[Brian Condron]

Or when kids wave at the train driver as the train passes by.

[Derek Wheeler]

Or when kids wave at the train driver as the train passes by.

Not quite Brian. Ive seen some dubious adults do this aswell from bridges and platforms. It usually involves Hoisting your arm up and down.

Im serious. Ive seen it. And the horn is blown to please them. What they get out of it is beyond me. But Ive only ever seen this in daylight. So as for night, I don't know.

Basically, I'd like to know what the original poster was getting at.

[Brian Condron]

Basically, I'd like to know what the original poster was getting at.

Perhaps he is rudely awakened by a passing train every morning!


Strange one with those dubious folks wanting to hear the train driver blow the horn, maybe they wanted to recapture lost youth! I know I'm pining for thse carefree summer days waving at trains from the third railway bridge in Ratheavan, Portlaoise :D

[Mark Gleeson]

As far as I know

Driver is required to sound the horn while passing through any open station where he or she is aware of people on the platform
At any board marked W (whistle) but not at night
Anytime where person(s) are seen trackside
When restarting the train at engineering works or through a red signal

I've lived 300m from a rail line for 22 years which has regular trains at 2am and 4am never woke up as a result

[MrX]

I live quite near the DART line southside and I've noticed a wake up blast from a DMU of some sort before 5:30am every morning. It's a little annoying to say the least.

The DART horns are a lot less disturbing than the fog horns that IE seem to use on their diesel trains.

IE trains generally seem to have a US-style "Wake the dead" air horn on the front. At least in the UK trains seem to have the option of a "dooo dooo" type noise to alert people it's on its way.

[Terrontress]

Basically, I'd like to know what the original poster was getting at.

More or less what is said beneath. I live beside Donabate Station.

Some trains sound their horns, some don't. I would rather that they all don't, unless there is a safety issue. It seems that they are sounded rather randomly, as if to amuse the drivers.

It can be annoying at 5 in the morning.

[Thomas J Stamp]

IE trains generally seem to have a US-style "Wake the dead" air horn on the front.

All the loco's are american, another example of shoehorning that Ie have been doing for 50 years.

I live beside Donabate Station.

There's both a bridge and a station so i'd guess it's a safety issue.

Also, perhaps the driver is worried about some stragglers from Smyths wandering around.....

[James Shields]

All the loco's are american, another example of shoehorning that Ie have been doing for 50 years.

Now, let's be fair, American locos have worked very well here - the same can not be said for the British ones that preceeded them,

And it's a trend the UK have followed, with their class 66 being more or less an upgraded 201.

[MrX]

Nothing wrong with american locomotives. I don't understand why people keep "dissing" the 201.. it's a fine machine and generally (other than on the enterprise) incrediably reliable.

Same with all of its Irish GM predecessors.

All I was saying was that the UK-style train horn is less distrubing.. the US-style foghorn-like horns on the 201s and all of the DMUs are a lot louder.

[ACustomer]

MrX: did you ever hear the sound of the train horn on the original Metrovic-engined "A" class (the most siginficant British loco to ever run in Ireland). It would waken the dead and send people of a nervous disposition to an early grave. God knows what sort of lawsuits it would have provoked in to-day's "sue, sue" environment.