WHATCOM COUNTY, Wash. — Life along Country Lane, a rural road in a community on the outskirts of Bellingham, is quiet and peaceful -- except for one thing -- the recurring blast of train horns as they rumble through the streets.
"If I'm outside and on my phone, I have to stop my conversation -- and we live 1/3 of a mile away," said homeowner Craig Henderson.
Fifteen trains pass through the crossing at Country Lane all day and night blowing their horns.
Neighbors said they have a safe and inexpensive solution but they can't get the county to sign off on it.
Henderson wants the county to install so-called "silent crossings."
They are barriers placed in the middle of the road to keep cars from driving around the crossing gates when they are down.
When those are present trains are not required to blow their horns. Whatcom County has installed three nearby, but not at Henderson's crossing.
"People that I have talked to say the silent crossing is a life-changing event," Henderson said.
County public works officials looked at four options but said the intersection at Country Road doesn't meet standard safety measures mandated by the Federal Railroad Administration for a silent crossing.
They determined other options would be too expensive or negatively impact traffic flow.
The county council ultimately decided to take "no action," effectively ending the project.
Henderson believes there are still viable options to make the silent crossings a reality.
"Knowing that we can actually fix this is the frustrating part," Henderson said. "We could convert two crossings for less than $40,000 while improving safety and eliminating noise pollution."
But, for now, the horns keep blowing.
And Henderson refuses to go quietly.
"If somebody looks for reasons not to do something, they're not going to do it," Henderson said. "If they look for reasons to do something they will do it."