Why the Train Horns at Tequesta Drive Haven't Gone Quiet Yet

The quiet zone at the Tequesta Drive railroad crossing is closer than it has ever been. It still won't arrive the day the last road crew packs up. According to the Village's own project report, the Federal Railroad Administration found that several pavement markings at the crossing are in the wrong place. Those markings have to be removed and relocated before the quiet zone can exist. Once that work is done, federal notice deadlines still apply. Even after that, horns will keep sounding on the same rail line at County Line Road, a crossing Tequesta does not control.

So the quiet zone will quiet one crossing. Here is what has to happen first, and why the second crossing is a separate decision.

Five Years on the Village's List

A "safe and quiet railroad crossing" has been on Tequesta's strategic plan since 2021. Village Manager Jeremy Allen spelled that out in a March 14, 2024 staff memo to the Village Council. The memo also says the Village chose to hold off on any quiet zone application until Brightline had an established schedule.

That schedule arrived in the fall of 2023. Brightline announced it would go from 16 to 30 daily trains between Orlando and Miami starting October 9, 2023. In December of that year, CBS12 reported that Brightline was crossing Tequesta Drive at least 30 times a day, according to Village officials. In May 2024, WLRN described the rhythm on this stretch of the Florida East Coast Railway: Brightline running hourly in each direction during the day, and freight trains at night that sound their horns four times as they approach every crossing.

At a workshop on December 4, 2023, the Council chose to wait. CBS12's report on the workshop said that the Village had already added gates and safety signs at the crossing and believed it met the criteria to apply. Council members still decided to give seasonal residents more time to adjust to the faster, more frequent trains. CBS12 quoted Council member Rick Sartory telling the workshop, "I'm not ready for it yet." Mayor Molly Young gave the station the Village's reasoning:

"The sounding of the horns provides a safety feature. It alerts pedestrians, people on bicycles, cars that there is a train coming. Safety really is the upmost importance to us."

The item came back in March 2024, when staff asked the Council to approve applying to the Federal Railroad Administration. The memo noted that the application itself has no cost, that the process would take several months, and that staff would consult the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council or a consultant on the application and the work.

Why Paint and Asphalt Are Holding It Up

A quiet zone swaps the horn for safety equipment at the crossing. The March 2024 memo explains that a locality first has to make up for the risk created when the horn goes away, and only then can trains stop routinely sounding it. In its 2024 coverage, WLRN quoted Palm Beach Gardens city engineer Todd Engle summing up the goal: get the risk without train horns "under the risk with the horns."

Small details at the crossing can hold up a quiet zone. WLRN reported that north county quiet zones were taking longer than expected because newly installed safety measures kept falling short of federal standards. Tequesta has now hit the same problem. The Village manager's dashboard gives project status as of September 30, 2026. It says the FRA confirmed that several pavement markings at the Tequesta Drive crossing must be removed and relocated. The Village's engineer reviewed the findings, and the fix means milling, repaving and restriping several lanes at the crossing. The Village planned that work with its road contractor for October and November.

For context on what this kind of work costs elsewhere: WLRN reported that taxpayer costs to upgrade crossings across six north Palm Beach County cities topped $3.5 million, with federal grants covering most of it. Upgrades at Jupiter's six crossings were estimated at more than $1 million, and Palm Beach Gardens' six at more than $450,000. Tequesta has one crossing in play, and what's left there is mostly lane striping.

The Federal Calendar After the Crews Leave

Finishing the pavement work doesn't silence the horns that same week. A public authority starts a quiet zone by sending a Notice of Quiet Zone Establishment. Under 49 CFR 222.43, that notice must give the date the quiet zone takes effect, and that date can't be earlier than 21 days after the notice is mailed. Where a Notice of Intent is required, the same section says the establishment notice can't be mailed until at least 60 days after the Notice of Intent. The exception is when written comments or "no-comment" statements have already come in from each railroad on the line and from the state agencies responsible for crossing and highway safety.

That gives Tequesta this order of steps:

1. Mill, repave and restripe the crossing to the FRA's corrections, planned for October and November 2026.
2. Mail the Notice of Quiet Zone Establishment once the federal notice requirements are met, with an effective date at least 21 days later.
3. On that date, trains stop routinely sounding horns at Tequesta Drive.

As of the Village's September report, the effective date is the one piece that hasn't been set. The Village has also been clear about what the quiet zone won't change. Its report says horns will still sound when needed for safety or emergencies. The 2024 staff memo adds that train horns may still be used to comply with other federal regulations or railroad operating rules.

The Crossing Tequesta Can't Quiet

The same paragraph of the Village report says horns "will continue at the nearby County Line Road crossing, where a Quiet Zone has not been established."

That crossing, at Old Dixie Highway and County Line Road, falls under Martin County, not the Village. In 2023, a Martin County administrator wrote to Tequesta officials that the county planned to monitor safety at its crossings for about a year, through roughly September 2024. After that, it would decide which crossings to convert using the data it collected.

The issue came back this spring. WPTV reported that on May 19, 2026, Martin County commissioners voted 3–2 to discuss quiet zones at a future meeting. They will schedule that discussion once a Federal Railroad Administration representative can attend. The station noted it was the first time in more than a year the commission had taken up the subject.

In that WPTV report, Hobe Sound resident Jeff Aderman, who is leading the push, told commissioners Brightline brings "30-plus trains a day and 40-plus blows a day with the horn." Commissioner Stacey Hetherington said, "There is a process in place. We can safely do this and implement these crossings and balance the quality of life for our residents." Commissioner Blake Capps was open to the discussion but questioned the order of steps. "What I wrestle with is whether we should get these additional safety measures in place first before we institute quiet zones in Hobe Sound," he said.

The May vote put quiet zones back on a future commission agenda, waiting on an FRA representative. Until Martin County acts, the County Line Road crossing stays on its current rules, even after Tequesta Drive goes quiet.

County Line Road has a second, separate change this season. Martin County closed the SE County Line Road bridge over the North Fork of the Loxahatchee River on October 20 for a replacement project, WPTV reported. The 200-foot section between SE Girl Scout Camp Road and SE Island Drive will stay closed through construction. WQCS reported completion is expected in October 2027, and drivers, cyclists and pedestrians must follow posted detours. The county's project page has the detour map, puts the cost at $7.4 million, and names Cone & Graham as the contractor.

The Same Stretch of Old Dixie, This Fall

The quiet zone fix is one of several jobs the Village's Public Works crews are running near the tracks this fall. The September dashboard reports that resurfacing on Old Dixie Highway is complete. Temporary pavement markings and delineators went in at the Old Dixie Highway and Bridge Road intersection, which the Village describes as having a history of serious crashes. Permanent striping was due within two weeks, weather permitting, and Palm Beach County and Public Works will watch traffic there to decide whether more changes are needed.

A few blocks of Tequesta Drive are also getting work. On the Tequesta Drive Bridge, spalling and paver walkway repairs were finished. Roughly 75 percent of the bridge had been pressure washed and 40 percent had its first coat of paint. The concrete pour for the new encasement was waiting for the king tide to drop, after rain and high water set the project back about a week.

For anyone driving Tequesta Drive toward the tracks this month, expect lane work at the crossing. That milling and restriping is the work the Village says must be finished before the quiet zone can be established.

We live and work in this corner of northern Palm Beach County, and we'll keep watching for the Village's notice and Martin County's next quiet zone discussion. If you own a home near the Old Dixie Highway corridor and want to know where it stands this season, Matt and Kate Shaw are glad to help. Request Your Free Home Valuation.