Rock Hill city council passed a 7 year 1.1 million dollar agreement last night to construct Quiet Zones at the Norfolk Southern Railway and the crossings of West Main Street and West White Street.
A quiet zone is a stretch of rail line with one or more consecutive crossings where a train would not sound its horn unless there was an emergency. The area currently has a 2 gate system and would be upgraded to a 4 quad gate system.
The decision did not come without some push back especially from Councilman Kevin Sutton who was not pleased with how the contract was worded. Sutton did not like that much of the wording of the contract made the City of Rock Hill liable and responsible.
Although the city would be responsible City Manager David Vehaun said he has spoken with others with similar contracts who have not run into many issues. The city will also look into insurance for the Quiet Zones in case of an accident.
Mayor Doug Echols said the decision was not an easy one, but one that needed to be made.
Council passed the plan with a 4-2 vote.