GOV
Railroad Crossings Quiet Zone Compliance
The City of St. Louis is making upgrades at railroad crossings to comply with Federal Railroad Administration regulations related to train horns.
Oct. 22, 2026:
Physical upgrades have been completed at 100 percent of the railroad crossings requiring upgrades. FRA inspections began on Wednesday, Oct. 21. As of 4:00 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 22, all 35 of the crossings inspected so far have successfully passed inspection. Inspections will continue until the end of October.
The list of 187 railroad crossings requiring upgrades included some crossings located in the county. We have requested that the majority of those county crossings be removed from our list, and the FRA has agreed. We will, however, retain responsibility for a few crossings that are close to the city/county border.
Vehicle counts at railroad crossings, which are needed to complete the necessary paperwork, are continuing and are expected to be complete by the end of the month.
We expect final documentation to be submitted to the FRA in early November.
General Overview
As of Sept. 10, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) formally suspended all quiet zones within the City of St. Louis. Railroads operating through the City have been directed to resume routine train horn sounding at all affected crossings.
The Office of Mayor Cara Spencer was made aware of the FRA’s actions to suspend the City’s quiet zones via email late on Sept. 10, 2026. Unfortunately, the FRA had been sending communications by email to a former director of operations who has not worked for the City for 16 months.
Once learning of the FRA’s requirements, the mayoral staff and City department leaders held an emergency meeting on Friday, Sept. 11, and submitted a request to the FRA for an extension before the quiet zone was suspended. That request for extension was denied.
The Street Department Director was appointed the city lead and immediately began verifying the FRA crossing list, establishing evaluation and repair teams, and built a plan of action based on the FRA’s information.
With initial planning complete, the Traffic and Lighting Division within the Street Department began the work at railroad crossings on Wednesday, Sept. 16, removing out-of-date railroad bars, inserting “stop bars” (painted bars in front of the crossings), and expedited an order for hundreds of new signs, all to bring the crossings into compliance as quickly as possible.
Railroad Crossings Map
Map Details
More information about this map
This service shows the FRA compliance status of all known at-grade rail crossings in the City of St. Louis.
What Is Required
The FRA’s initial inspection indicated the City of St. Louis needed to implement upgrades at 88 railroad crossings. Since then, the FRA provided a list of 187 railroad crossings to be upgraded.
- Railroad crossing signs at each location must be changed from a 30-inch sign to a 36-inch sign. COMPLETED ON OCT. 19
- Former stop bar road markings must be removed. COMPLETED ON OCT. 5
- New stop bar road markings must be painted. COMPLETED ON OCT. 7
- The city completes required documentation for each crossing located in a corridor. IN PROGRESS
- The FRA inspects all crossings in a corridor once repaired and related repair documentation received. IN PROGRESS
Timeline
The City is focusing repairs first on corridors with high residential density and occupancy. Following official confirmation from the FRA, quiet zones will be reinstated corridor by corridor as physical work and required documentation are approved, providing faster relief to neighborhoods without waiting for all 187 crossings to be completed.
Progress Updates
Week of Oct. 19:
Upgrades completed: Physical upgrades have been completed at all railroad crossings requiring upgrades.
Inspections have begun: FRA inspectors began reviewing physical upgrades onsite and inspections are going smoothly. Of the 35 crossings inspected as of end of day Thursday, Oct. 22, all have been found to be in compliance.
County crossings to be taken off list: FRA has agreed to remove most of the county crossings that had been included on the City of St. Louis list. A few crossings at the city/county border will remain on our list due to the impact on city residents.
Week of Oct. 12:
Signage installation: In less than one week since new 36-inch signs were delivered to City warehouses, signs have been installed at 90 percent of the railroad crossings requiring upgrades.
Documentation: As part of the documentation process, traffic counts are needed at each railroad crossing requiring upgrades. Those traffic counts are currently being conducted.
Week of Oct. 5:
Pavement Markings to be Completed: Grinding of former road markings was completed on Monday, Oct. 5, and painting of new stop bar road markings across city crossings will be completed on Wednesday, Oct. 7.
Signage Delivery Pending: Expedited delivery of required 36-inch advance warning signs is expected next week. Street Department crews are scheduled to begin installation immediately upon arrival.
Corridor-by-Corridor Reinstatement Approved: The FRA has officially agreed to reinstate quiet zones incrementally on a corridor-by-corridor basis as physical repairs and documentation are completed, rather than waiting for all 187 city crossings. Work is being prioritized in areas with high residential density.
Week of Sept. 28:
Crews have completed grinding out former stop bar road markings at 120 crossings and have painted new stop bar road markings at 20 crossings. Grinding should be completed next week, then crews will fully transition to painting new stop bars. Signs are expected to be delivered late next week. Installation of signs will begin as soon as we receive them.
Week of Sept. 21:
All signs have been ordered. Crews are removing former stop bar road markings.
Week of Sept. 14:
Removed out-of-date railroad bars, inserted “stop bars,” and expedited an order for hundreds of new signs.
Upgrades to Railroad Crossings Videos
Railroad Crossing Compliance Update #1
Check out the latest updates on the City of St. Louis' work to reduce train horn noise. #trains #hornnoise #reducenoise More information: City of St. Louis: https://www.stlouis-mo.gov
Contact
Department of Streets
(314) 647-3111
1900 Hampton Ave
St. Louis, MO 63139
Monday thru Friday, 8:00 - 4:30
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