Are trains louder in cold weather?

Cold air decreases the velocity of sound, but doesn't affect it's intensity. However, the snow covered, windless environment would likely reduce the ambient noise environment, making it possible for more distant sounds to be heard than usual. Also, your valley location might magnify distance sounds in unexpected ways.



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The intensity of sound will vary at night, sometimes louder and sometimes softer. It has to do with the height and strength of a temperature inversion just above the ground. On clear, calm nights, it is cooler at the ground than higher up.

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But railways suffer unique problems. When jammed with ice, mechanical switches can become unmovable. Overhead wires may snap. Amtrak's electric lines “are like any piece of metal—when they get cold, they get shorter,” says Augustine Ubaldi, a railroad engineering expert with Robson Forensics.

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Noise pollution and vibrations are some of the biggest concerns, particularly for people who live within one-third of a mile of railroads or railyards, says Natalia Caldeira Loss Vincens, an expert in public health at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden.

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The horn needs to sound 15 to 20 seconds before the train arrives at a grade crossing, an area when road and rail intersect. They are also required to sound a short blast of noise if they see anything on the tracks. If it's an animal, a deer or cat, a sharp report from the horn usually scares it away.

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Anyway, don't blame the engineer: They're required to blow that horn. The regulation in question is called the Final Rule on the Use of Locomotive Horns—a name that strongly implies they've had just about enough of your bitching—and it requires four blasts 15 to 20 seconds before every crossing.

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