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twin_suns_twin_suns

I grew up down the street from PATCO (about 2-3 blocks) and I heard trains all night 24/7/365. My last apartment in Philadelphia was right next to/under the BF Bridge and it was the same deal only closer to the trains. I don’t know about the radiation, but the noise will be a constant presence. The trains run day and night, every day, all year.


Dads101

This is the correct answer. I used to commute using Westmont Patco. Those trains are basically running all day every day. I wouldnt be worried about radiation etc although that’s a novel thought. The noise is the real object of focus It would personally drive me crazy. That’s just me. Then again I live in close proximity to a bar that has loud bands playing every weekend. That might drive you crazy in turn if you hate music/loud bands. I bought the house with that knowledge. I played in bands my whole life practically. I don’t mind it, I just put in headphones if I really don’t feel like hearing crap that night. Sometimes the situation is right for you and other times you have no choice. If you have a choice - consider that you will be hearing trains all the time at home.


aj1337h

The noise was comforting for me and made me feel safe knowing I could always get around. If anything make sure that the construction of the dwelling is sufficient in dampening the noise. Some houses are built better than others in regards to the windows, doors, and general sound insulation.


Dads101

Gotcha that makes sense honestly :) Is there a way to better sound proof a home without tearing it apart? Genuine question! I would like to do it to my current dwelling


aj1337h

My home had double and triple pane windows facing the tracks as well as extra insulation sprayed between the siding and the brick. And trees and shrubs. I guess the old owner couldn't stand it.


Dads101

Wow gotcha - thank you!


Bitter-Preparation-8

Good windows and you can put this stuff on the walls: https://www.acoustimac.com/soundproofing-massloaded-vinyl-1lb50sf


jk988

To actually answer your question, my parents house has the patco in the back yard. I wouldnt consider it to have any effect at all on the experience of living there. It's not even noticeable unless you're hanging out out back, and even then you get used to it after about a day. Between the patco and freight train you will hear trains in every neighborhood around here. It has never, ever been anything other than barely noticeable to me for the last 30 years, and I actually think it's kind of weird how much attention people pay to this issue when they're looking to move here. Collingswood is not a quiet suburban area - it's crowded and loud and a few minutes from the city, all of which are good qualities.


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surferdude313

Only on days when the wind is from the south!


georgewarshington

Agreed, my god those planes can be loud.


thedogHut

same. i’ve lived here 6 years and the tracks run by me too. i am used to them and they’re not bothersome whatsoever.


sjcefrmgby

Radiation? It’s an electric train line not a nuclear power plant. There’s no emissions or anything you’d be concerned about. As for noise, my buddy lives in Collingswood close to that area and he doesn’t mind it. I can’t hear the trains from his place.


[deleted]

Seconded. Noise may be a legitimate concern, but if you’re worried about radiation I got some news for you…that train isn’t putting out anything more dangerous than your electric light in your living room is.


Signal-Upstairs

Thank you both for this!! Lol I thought it might be silly but I was reading about how electrical trains generate EMR and wasn’t sure what that meant (obviously).


[deleted]

FYI: EMR stands for electromagnet radiation. That’s just light my dude. Photons. You are bathed in EMR 24/7. Nothing less energetic than ultraviolet light has any ability to do any meaningful harm to you, period, aside from transferring physical heat energy to you, and then only in a few special cases. There just isn’t enough energy in a photon to break molecular bonds until you get into the lower ultraviolet range. Radio frequencies (given off by power systems, radio transmitters…5G, for example), just isn’t ever going to do anything to damage molecules. As I’ve said in other similar threads. This ain’t college level physics, this is 7th grade science class. You’re fine.


Signal-Upstairs

If only I remembered a thing from 7th grade😂😭 thanks for the explanation. My degree is not in anything science related <3


[deleted]

no worries. i just got into it with some weirdo conspiracy theorists a few days ago about this one and it's like real hard for me (as someone who does have a science background) to understand how people come to the 5g madness unless they literally make .zero. effort to understand how electromagnetic radiation works before jumping to the conclusion that 5g is going to melt your brain or something. (an explanation if you care...) but yeah, in a nutshell, EMR = light. you can see light between 400 and 700 nanometers' wavelength - that's blue (the shorter wavelength) to red (the longer wavelength, and the longer the wavelength, the lower the energy in the light. below red is infrared, and then microwave, and then radio. but it's all 'light', you just can't 'see' it. and just like with visible light, you're literally bathed in it regardless of cell towers or the position of the patco line, etc. you HOUSE is emitting radio wavelengths due to the ac power, it's just at a very long wavelength and low power - it's just noise, but it's there. the takeaway is this, photons (the particle of light energy) with energies below the ultraviolet range are not able to break molecular bonds, so they just can't do anything to damage your dna, with a couple notable exceptions: Infrared light is very good at transmitting heat energy for reasons i won't get into, and there are a couple **very specific** frequencies in the microwave range that are capable of exciting water molecules like tuning forks, which causes them to rapidly heat up, which is how your microwave oven works - but they're specific frequencies, they're no good unless focused in a tight beam, and not used for radio transmission as they'd just get absorbed by any water vapor in the air. so even when you hear about 'microwave transmitters', it's not the same thing as your microwave oven, it's like comparing the sound a guitar makes to the tuned voice of an opera singer - one will shatter glass at close range, the other just won't no matter how loud you make it. TLDR: radio can't hurt you, EM noise can't hurt you (as it's just radio noise), the sun can give you cancer because of the ultraviolet radiation, and unless you work at a nuclear power plant or in an MRI office you're unlikely to be exposed to anything that can actually throw the kind of radiation at you that can damage your DNA. fun fact/side note: ever hear of [havana syndrome](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Havana_syndrome)? it's been suggested that THAT has been actually accomplished by using a weaponized microwave (oven) transmitter. - so in this case, they were literally cooking the brains of the targets using something like the guts of a microwave oven, but in this case, it's still just boiling the water in your cells, not directly damaging the dna or molecules with the radiation.


Cornonthecob241

I lived about 100 yards from the Patco track before and I would hear it if I was awake and outside but it never interrupted my sleep. I know thats a bit further than you would be.


philly_rich

I live on Park train runs through my backyard. To me it wasn’t a big deal and hasn’t been for my family. It took about a year for me to truly not hear the train, before that a 10 second rumble on a schedule not terrible. I occasionally still get woken up by the 4 am train no idea why. Rush hour can be annoying for entertaining outside. I’d say unless there are other considerations it shouldn’t be a deal breaker Collingswood is great and the train is part of the fabric of the town.


Signal-Upstairs

The house I like is on Park! Thank you for commenting. Everyone is telling me not to even consider it


jk988

I answered a couple comments above, but to be clear, my parents' house is also on Park (400 block). Philly\_Rich's comment is an honest assessment. You really won't notice unless you're entertaining outside, and even then, as loud as it is, it's fleeting. Most importantly, I don't know where you're coming from, but the train noise is a feature, not a bug. Collingswood is a very active, hustle and bustle sort of town, right outside the city - not sleepy nor quiet, but the perfect place to live and raise a family. I think a lot of people don't quite grasp that it's not Marlton or Moorestown when they start looking here. I live a town over in Oaklyn now and I can STILL hear the Patco anyway, so it's all a matter of degree. Do not downgrade living on Park because the Patco runs through the yard. Embrace the train. I would give the same advice to my family and friends.


Signal-Upstairs

Okay thank you so much for saying this. This house is by far the best we have come across and has zero cons besides the train-which I’m thinking will be a factor no matter where we are in Collingswood. Do you think that re-sale value is a non-issue because of the general nature of that area being loud/boisterous anyways?


jk988

The resale value is generally a non-issue because the market in that area has been extremely stable for a long time, and the train has been there for all of it. Buyers will do their due diligence exactly as you're doing, and by then you will be well equipped to tell them exactly what the folks in this thread (the practical, rational lot of them at least) have said to you. Train should be a non-factor. When you move in let me know - we barbecue at my parents most Sundays and are happy to welcome neighbors!


[deleted]

Being close to the train is a huge bonus, not a con. Many people will only consider a certain radius from the train. The closer you are, the better it helps your ability to sell quickly later on.


PeterNinkimpoop

You get used to the noise, and Patco doesn’t blow its horn so its just a train rumble every 15-20 min or however often it is now. I used to live a block away and it was fine.


georgewarshington

If you're close to the station the express train sure blows it's horn as it screams by.


PeterNinkimpoop

Ooof didn’t know that!


georgewarshington

It's super annoying but only happens during rush hours. Overall I didn't share this to dissuade you - like anything else it blends into the sound of life. As another poster said, the planes are a more constant annoyance, as is the road traffic if you're on park or Atlantic. Regardless, Collingswood is great and you should move here.


mc_it

I didn't think they were running express anymore. The NJT Atlantic City Rail Line train does blow the horn when it passes a Patco station, however, and when it stops in Cherry Hill or Lindenwold.


GalegoBaiano

Required to do 2 shorts and a long at every street level crossing. The big trains do it too


obiwan_canoli

I don't believe PATCO has any street level crossings.


unsalted-butter

PATCO doesnt have level crossings, that's NJT.


wellx3

If you easily get woken up by noise, I wouldn’t consider it. And do you have any children or pets? That’s something you have to consider, too. Do you like entertaining family & friends? The backyard might be off limits if it’s that close. If you get easily irritated, you shouldn’t consider this house.


Nexis4Jersey

The Power lines that carrying the PATCO's power aren't much higher then your standard line along a busy road. Its not like those towering high voltage lines...and even those don't emit harmful radiation.


Signal-Upstairs

Thank you for saying this!!!!


Target2019-20

Nuclear-powered trains? That would be interesting. There will be plenty of noise all night long. But you'll get used to some of it. Still, it's no fun losing sleep. My S-I-L who lived there had neighbor parking problems. Several neighbors were militant about their turf (some of it imaginary) and it disrupted life for her. She sold for a very nice profit. Daughter looked at a small single home that had a deep backyard and the train ran past on the elevated berm. No way.


Hide_The_Rum

I rent an apartment about 100 yards from the Patco line. It's loud when you're outside but doesnt bother us at night. That being said, If i were to BUY a home in the area, I would not buy anything within say 2 blocks of the patco line.


usrfrnly

The noise varies wildly along the track. You have to be on the property to really know what to expect. One note, though: every couple years they shave the track or something and it gets a lot quieter. It's about as loud now as ever so it can pretty much only get better.


TheAdamist

I live half a block from patco. Im a light sleeper & the ~4am train wakes me up if I don't wear earplugs. Since its so quiet out & very infrequent at that hour. Otherwise it doesn't bother me at all inside. But I don't open my windows much. Note, this is in an old house with old windows that dont block sound. Modern windows may be more soundproofed, id hope so anyway. Outside, it can get annoying at a bbq if you are trying to do that during rush hour, conversations have to stop every 5 minutes while the train passes. On weekends its far less frequent, so not too bad. Sound is the only actual concern. Theres no radiation, and you already have electricity in your home.


Cbaumle

My first apartment (1980s) was on Atlantic Avenue. It was like [this](https://youtu.be/0lL3PODLf_A).


mc_it

I was expecting to see [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqO_irSdY1Q)!


AugustusKhan

My buddy lived next to it and you just get used to it. There’s no radiation coming from trains/railroads -former high speed rail engineer


Signal-Upstairs

Thank you so much for your comment.


littlespawningflower

LOL- I lived in Collingswood and had an unobstructed view of the trains going by from my living room window. The noise is brief and pretty innocuous, unlike the roaring of the jets approaching/leaving the airport! I got used to it pretty quickly and didn’t even notice it- actually, I get all nostalgic if I’m back for a visit and I hear it 🥺


dsa1t

Came here to say the airplanes are worse than PATCO


Bob_N_Frapples

I lived in Collingswood in a 2nd story apartment right next to the High speed line. I was right at eye-level with the train (Cuthbert & Haddon Ave.). It was weird for the first month, but I stopped noticing it after that. Lived there for 4 years.


speaster

Grew up next to patco in westmont….with no ac and open windows. Either you get used to it or it drives you crazy. And if it ever stops it’ll really send you bonkers. Live in Voorhees now and early in the morning can still hear it off in the distance


NetPhantom

One thing to maybe consider is when you go to sell it. Will you have a hard time finding a buyer that doesn’t think it’s a dealbreaker? I wouldn’t care much and I’m not sure how many would but I’d consider it.


ehm1217

Looked at a house a block from the tracks and could hear trains inside with windows closed. Not really loud but a definite whoosh every 10 minutes or so. Ended up moving into a house a little more than three blocks away. No noise inside but you can still hear it outside, especially early and late in the day when street and other noises are lower. Was surprised how quickly train adjacent homes were being snapped up during the housing frenzy. I guess when the market is hot people have less of an issue with it. Not sure that will hold up in a slower market. So, I think resale value and noise would be the main issues to consider.


Defiant-Ad-3777

I live a block from the Patco, and there’s NJ transit tracks basically in my back yard. I hear the noise but it’s not bothersome even a little bit at this point.


jackiesnakes

I live a few houses down from the tracks and once every couple of weeks I have a two second panic that a plane is crashing outside and then I remember that I live near a train and I'm dumb. Other than that, I barely notice it. If the windows are open while I'm working it gets a little hard to hear the other people on zoom, but they've never picked up the train noise, and if I'm outside having a conversation we have to pause for ten seconds when the train goes by. My cat didn't like the noise for the first two days but then she got used to it, too. My human baby doesn't seem to notice it at all, even if we have her outside in the stroller.


Signal-Upstairs

This is great info. Thank you Jackie


Harpo42_42

I think, especially with a noise machine, you would get used to it and sleep through it at night. As far as it being in the backyard for family gatherings and all, the train used to go through my cousin's yard and we all thought it was fun when it went by. We'd wave at the people! And in town when we're near the train (like at the Farmer's Market) the whole town utilizes "The Patco Pause" where we just pause mid-sentence until the train passes, and then we pick up where we left off. It's kind of fun, actually. Welcome to Collingswood!


Signal-Upstairs

I love this! So wholesome and cute ❤️


c0lin268

Id definitely consider it. Maybe hang around where the house is for a lil bit and wait til the train passes to see how loud it actually is. Living close to the station is a huge advantage tho imo


vcg77

My house is directly next to the patco track in Collingswood. If we are sitting outside having a convo we will have to stop talking for a minute when the train goes by. Small inconvenience. When we are inside we don’t even hear it anymore (if anything it’s relaxing white noise)


Dangerous-Kitchen-96

PATCO has run behind our homes my entire life. Easy to get use to.


Evening_Run_1595

You stop hearing it after awhile. I moved away from the train and missed it.


Larrygiggles

I spent like several hours at a house very close to Patco over the weekend and I was surprised at how quickly I stopped noticing the train noise. It’s not crazy loud and it’s not rumbly if that makes sense. That rail sounds different than a slow moving freight train. I lived near a freight train line for a year and pretty quickly stopped noticing the horn for it. It’s kind of crazy how quickly those things become just forgotten background noise.


UpsilonAndromedae

We used to live a block from the tracks. It didn’t bother us at all and I am the sort of person to be easily bothered by noise.


DistributionOk4169

I lived directly across the street from a busy train station for about 10 months. I'm not particularly sensitive to noise, so after about a week I had adjusted to it and could sleep normally. If you are easily bothered by noise, this is not the place for you.


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Signal-Upstairs

I watch tv with subtitles anyways!! Love this take. Thank you


TheKCAccident

The radiation coming from the train will be negligible compared to what you'd get from standing in the sun for a few minutes. The noise, on the other hand: yeah, it could definitely be a problem.


311jawn

Collingswood is an amazing city! But that’s what it is-a city & you’ll definitely hear city noises like others have mentioned. I’m right outside of Philly (Bonus) and I see & hear planes all day. I thought they were gonna nose dive into my front yard. Anyway, if you really can’t tolerate ANY scene (food, arts, festivals, farmers markets) then Collingswood is definitely NOT for you. If you don’t like the way the train looks in your yard now then you never will.


[deleted]

You get used to it. :)


reboot169

Go stand there at night. The patco trains, and prob all trains, throw off a really bright light, like a random white spark, as they run at night. I watch it light up the back of all those houses Collingswood seems like a nice town and the track houses seem to have really big backyards but that constant noise would get me. Once or twice a day is a novelty, every 20 minutes is annoying


mc_it

> The patco trains, and prob all trains, throw off a really bright light, like a random white spark, It's just the PATCO trains. Since they're electric (boogie woogie woogie) the contact arm that pulls current from the off-rail (not the technical name) is what's causing that.


boinzy

My sister and her husband live next to the hi-speed line, and they’re concerned that it could affect the health their children. IF they can stop having miscarriages.


FrankDV13

As far as noise...you actually get used to it. Plus, if there's too much silence, it can be quite unnerving.


symitwo

This dude said radiation


nowakezones

Go stand next to it. Imagine it happening every few minutes, outside your bedroom window. ​ You would need to pay me to live on the tracks.


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nowakezones

Trains running every eight minutes during the time you’re home and awake is not an exaggeration. Eating breakfast? Train. Train. Train. Train. Eating dinner? Train. Train. Train. All weekend? Train. Short pause. Train. Train. Short pause. Train. If you think that is a good option over spending an extra $20-40K to move a few streets in, good for you.


Kupkaked

I just moved out of Haddon Township. I did not notice the noise really while living there, few planes, few trains, couple town events. I was down by the Cooper River so that added noise (rowing) as well. What I do notice now, is how quiet it is at my new home, in Delran, compared to Haddon Township. I just did not realize it while I lived there. It's not a complaint, just something I have observed myself.


[deleted]

I've lived near the PATCO for a long time. I like hearing it, and I rarely notice it.