Trees to help muffle port train noise in Greer

Greer City Council has decided to help the South Carolina Ports Authority pay for additional landscaping along the railroad in response to residents' concerns about South Carolina Inland Port traffic.

The project, which is already underway, will include more trees and shrubs, mainly along Moore Street, Mayor Rick Danner said.

Danner said the city will contribute $8,100.

The Ports Authority has committed $25,000 while the city has agreed to oversee the implementation of the project, said Erin Pabst, authority spokeswoman.

"I think as is typical with any landscaping project, we put in phase one and that was done in the winter," Pabst said. "And then we had to ... evaluate how these things would blossom. So we have identified some areas that we can enhance and that's basically what this effort is."

The council's vote to put up $8,100 stemmed from residents in Greer's Victor Mill community who have expressed concerns about noise and vibration from inland port traffic.

Danner said there won't be any berm work done because of right-of-way and drainage issues. Hopefully, over time, the additional landscaping will make a significant difference in the noise reduction, he said.

Longtime Victor Mill resident James Center said the city's latest efforts aren't enough. Center said the money should go toward installing berms as opposed to just planting more trees.

"That's not really going to solve anything," Center said.

The berms are what will have a greater impact in helping to reduce noise and vibration, he said.

At public meetings last summer, the Ports Authority presented conceptual drawings of the inland port terminal and surrounding landscaping.

City Administrator Ed Driggers earlier said that there were some modifications to the plans presented by the authority.

"Whoever it is, be it the city of Greer, the Ports Authority or the railroad, somebody is taking advantage of the little man," Center said. "They have not done what they said they were going to do."

Greer resident Jason Tyler said he's also affected by the noise and vibration although he lives farther from town off Genoble Road. Tyler said he hears trains idling and what sounds like loud dropping of cargo in the middle of the night.

"Some nights are worse than others," he said. "We're on the rural countryside of Highway 80. It's also a big concern for the folks out here ... as well. That's how far the noise is traveling."

Pabst, in a statement, addressed night hour operations: "While the inland port is a fully operational port terminal, the SCPA seeks to minimize activity during night hours when possible out of the sensitivity for our neighbors."