There has been lots of discussion about how the Southeast High Speed Rail project will affect downtown Raleigh. One proposed route would close a grade crossing at Fairview Road. Some have suggested that the neighbors near Fairview Road might prefer that Fairview Road stay open.
I don’t live in right next to the tracks but I do live close enough to cross at Fairview every now and then. About half the time the crossing is blocked: the trains at the nearby Norfolk Southern yard frequently stretch across the road as their freight is assembled. It’s gotten to the point that I simply assume the road will be blocked and that I’ll have to wait. As far as I’m concerned, closing an already-congested crossing wouldn’t be that big of an impact.
Then there’s the noise. All day and night, the trains sound their horns as they move back and forth across the road. I live a mile away from this crossing and even from here they sound loud. I don’t know how the folks at Roanoke Park deal with it. Living right next to the tracks, the trains must be deafening. Closing the crossing would mean the trains would no longer sound their horns. That sounds like a plus to me.
Will the high-speed trains bring change? Sure they will. But they’ll bring more good changes than bad ones.