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Council sought to shorten street blockage time for railroad trains, restrict idling, and control noise levels.

Official:Amending Title 12 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled the "Traffic Code," pertaining to railroad trains and the blocking of streets, and excessive idling and noise.

Sponsor: Councilmember Nutter

Introduced: October 20, 2005

: Committee on Transportation and Public Utilities

environment public safety traffic

No one voted on this bill

This bill was introduced in the 2004–2007 Council term and when that term ran out. The public record shows no committee vote and no floor vote at any stage, so no member of Council ever went on record for or against it.

That is not unusual here. Of the 8,465 bills introduced between 2000 and 2025, 1,624 lapsed without a single recorded vote. Ninety percent of bills that became law carry a roll call. Three percent of lapsed bills do. How this works.

Plain-Language Summary

This bill aims to reduce traffic congestion and noise pollution by limiting how long railroad trains can block streets, and restricting engine idling and excessive noise from vehicles and trains.

What This Bill Does

AI-written. Every figure is checked against the bill text.

Limits the time that railroad trains can block streets to 5 minutes, with some exceptions for trains in motion.
Prohibits engine idling of motor vehicles and railroad trains for more than 3 minutes while parking, stopping, or standing.
Prohibits engine idling of buses, trucks, and railroad trains for more than 5 minutes while parking, stopping, or standing at a terminal point along an established route.
Prohibits excessive noise from motor vehicles and railroad trains, but the specifics of this prohibition are not detailed in the provided text.