Clarington committee recommends council declare whistles should not be used at Bennett and Cobbledick CN crossings
Clarington’s General Government Committee voted June 2 to recommend that council declare train whistles “should not be used” at the CN grade-level crossings on Bennett Road and Cobbledick Road.
The committee’s recommendation, if adopted by council, would be a formal municipal step related to whistle cessation at the two crossings. The same recommendation also asks for a request to Metrolinx tied to the Bowmanville GO Expansion project and calls for a 2026 budget request for a broader whistle-cessation study.
The vote was recorded as Resolution GG-115-25 and related to staff report LGS-020-25.
In addition to the Bennett Road and Cobbledick Road crossings, the committee recommended that council request Metrolinx implement whistle-cessation measures as part of the Bowmanville GO Expansion project “at all grade level crossings on the Bowmanville Line Extension along the CP Rail corridor.” The recommendation says the request is intended “to mitigate issues related to increased train traffic and growth within the Courtice and Bowmanville GO Station Areas.”
The committee also recommended that council direct municipal staff to prepare a 2026 budget request for a Clarington-wide whistle-cessation study. The recommendation says the study would look at potential implementation and operating costs, the development of policies to address whistle-cessation requests, and performance information from the Cobbledick Road and Bennett Road CN crossings after whistle cessation.
During the meeting, resident Pamela Jazic told committee members she hears “numerous train whistles” in Newcastle, in the Lakeshore Road and Morgans Road area. Jazic asked the committee to consider whistle cessation at the Lakeshore Road crossing, saying it has the same safety features as the Cobbledick Road and Bennett Road crossings.
The committee’s whistle-cessation discussion also included correspondence from Joel Kennedy, Unifor Canada’s national rail director, regarding whistle cessation at the Bennett Road and Cobbledick Road crossings, according to the meeting agenda item list in the minutes.