Monica M. Joyce - Comments

Dear Sir/Madam, I am a resident in Ipswich, Massachusetts a small town of 13 K individuals. About a month ago, without prior warning to me or my neighbors, the MBTA commuter train horn started blasting through our town. Most days this starts at 05:40 am and ends at 23:45. It happens 26 times per day, at 20 blasts a session, for a total of 520 times per day. The area is a ¼ mile segment of track and has 5 crossings. There are about 1000 residents that are severely impacted by this action. They are suffering with sleep deprivation and overall are showing signs of stress. Small children run, covering their ears and try to hide from the horns in their homes. Parents have been advised to place noise reduction headsets on their infants by their pediatricians. The horns are not merely a nuisance but they are a threat to the public health in our community. Local officials and citizens have measured the blast at levels from 116 to 128 decibels. One of the families has measured it to be 120 decibels in their bedroom of their townhouse. I am aware of the fact that hearing can be damaged by noises above 85 decibels. Obviously, this is a very unhealthy situation. In addition to residences, there are a variety of town buildings and businesses close to the tracks. Also of great concern it a very popular park with playground equipment for toddlers and young children. Our town recreation department operates a program here several hours per day in the summer. There are multiple playing fields and practices for baseball, youth soccer, adult soccer leagues, school field hockey and tennis courts. The part is located next to the Linebrook Road intersection. It has come to our attention that our town officials and town manager neglected to complete the necessary safety plan and paperwork to maintain the quiet zone status in our town. As a health care provider and mother of four I can assure you that nothing is more important to me than safety. But I do believe that we can strike a compromise here and not put our hearing and mental health at risk any longer. I implore you to work with our MBTA to lower the decibel levels to the lowest possible level and to re-evaluate the number to blasts that need to be delivered in this short distance of track. We are suffering. We need to minimize this trauma until the quiet zone can be restored. It has come to our attention that our town officials and town manager neglected to complete the necessary safety plan and paperwork to maintain the quiet zone status in our town. am part of a neighborhood group that is working to put pressure on the officials to comply with the FRA guidelines. Finally I want to say thank you for reducing the comment time to 20 days and for Mr. Kulms letters and phone calls to me and my neighbors. I am sure we can arrive at a compromise that keeps the conductors, passengers and residents safe from train accidents without disruptive and destructive horn blasts. Sincerely, Monica Joyce