Cane railway corridor noise

Increasing public awareness of environmental issues such as noise generated by road and rail transport has led to the Queensland Department of Environment and Heritage proposing long-term objective noise limits for these operations. Such longterm objectives obviously include cane transport. In particular, cane railways must be included because, as a group, these railways form the third largest railway system in Australia. This paper considers railway noise in general and the implications for cane railways in particular. It outlines community response to unwanted transport noise and strategies being put in place by State Government railway systems to reduce or contain the effect of railway noise on communities living alongside railway corridors. Several cane train noise sources have been identified. These include locomotive radiator fan, engine and mechanical transmission noise. Wheel-rail interaction noises, poorly maintained or out of round wheels ant! bin sheeting also contribute to pass-by noise generated by cane trains. This paper also presents some details of the effect of these sources. Proposed long-term objectiv~ levels for pass-by noise for all railways in Queensland are presented and their likely effect on cane railway operations is outlined. Some strategies for reducing the ~ffect of cane railway noise on sensitive areas are presented.