Working rail roads and their tracks.

[5030]

The train always wins... Never understood people playing chicken with a moving train. Never in that big of a rush to play at getting dead.

I see FEC (Florida East Coast) is having car train crash issues with their high speed Brightline passanger service in Florida. They have many grade crossings where there should be underground or above street level crossings.

I sure as heck would not want to be the train engineer or the fireman and have to be first on the scene in a vehicle-train crash.

I have a pretty good friend who is an engineer for the Norfolk-Southern and runs the route from Cleveland to Chicago with miny grade crossings and high track speed. In fact that 2 track line was where the world's speed record for a steam locomotive was set many years ago. Flat, straight (to Butler, Indiana) and smooth. He told me he has been first on the scene of many car and truck, train incidents but no fatalities yet...

Not something I'd ever want to do.

 

[ArlyA]

Probably ash pits for steam locomotives.

I like your ash pit theory. Here is one, but smaller than the pit I seen at Quincy.

 

[5030]

CN afternoon hill job R922 spots cars for dumping at Dock 6 as the American Integrity loads. They were filling the gravity pockets on the west side of the dock, so expect a chute/spout load soon. Duluth, MN - May 27, 2025— in Duluth, MN.View attachment 3524714

I see American Integrity came real close to hitting the wall on her outbound segment., I mean REAL CLOSE as in less than 2 feet. I guess it's not a 'hit' unless there is physical contact though her bow wash breached the edge of the wall and put water on the sidewalk adjacent to the ship. She was making good spped as well. I have no idea what the proper channle speed is but she appeared to me to be speeding. I was surprised that she wasn't mid channel but then I can imagine that navigating a 1000 footer takes a lot of skill in a narrow channel.

Close only counts in horseshoes they say...

 

[5030]

At the Quincy mine site Hancock MI. Next to the RR tracks is this pit but tracks could have gone over it. My first thought it was the remains of an engine service pit but they do have a round house but its a 1/4 a mile away which is seen below. Your thoughts on the pits use?? View attachment 3463733View attachment 3463734View attachment 3463735

Keep in mind that maintenance crews do have to get underneath an engine or cars to perforn maintenance, even on newer units, so a pit would be necesary, especially in a car-engine shop. Brake shoes come to mind immediately.

My late mom's 2nd husband (my dad passed earliy in life), lost his right leg working as a brakeman in a short line in Cleveland, Ohio. He was riding the side ladder on a hopper car and slipped and that was that. Railroading even today is a dangerous occupation that demands constant awareness. Those engines and cars show no mercy towards humans.

 

[MossRoad]

Clean out the fire box?

I said this because I have an older friend that used to go to work with his dad. His dad's job was to move steam engines around, clean out the fireboxes, etc... he said there was a pit his dad would pull the engine over and he'd then scrape out the coals and ash. So I was just guessing.

Also, he said his dad would let him sit in the cab while he went and turned the hand crank on the turntable to turn the engines around.

What great memories.

 

[dodge man]

We just had someone and his dog get killed by a train in our area. He was on a 4 wheeler and got it stuck and was trying to get it off the tracks.

 

[MossRoad]

We just had a 16 year old high school kid struck and killed by a train in the next town over while crossing the tracks. No details.

Wife and I used to walk a mile long section of Grand Trunk Western tracks about once a week long before we were married to cut 3 miles off of a walk. If a train came, we'd ditch it into the bushes far from the tracks. Lots of stuff flies when they go by at 45-50mph.

I can imagine that someone with earbuds in listening to music would have little notice of a train coming up behind them.

Have heard several stories of people watching a train crossing in front of them from left to right, then moving across double tracks without noticing an oncoming train from right to left and being struck. That happened several times here at crossings without arms.

 

[bcp]

I think people who live near the tracks learn to "tune out" the train horns.

When it is intended for them, it is still "tuned out."

Bruce

 

[ning]

We just had a 16 year old high school kid struck and killed by a train in the next town over while crossing the tracks. No details.

Wife and I used to walk a mile long section of Grand Trunk Western tracks about once a week long before we were married to cut 3 miles off of a walk. If a train came, we'd ditch it into the bushes far from the tracks. Lots of stuff flies when they go by at 45-50mph.

I can imagine that someone with earbuds in listening to music would have little notice of a train coming up behind them.

Have heard several stories of people watching a train crossing in front of them from left to right, then moving across double tracks without noticing an oncoming train from right to left and being struck. That happened several times here at crossings without arms.

I remember as a kid being next to the tracks when the SP freight blew through and I remember feeling like it was pulling me in though I was at least 20' away. Always terrified me but the older kids said we were doing it... at least the pennies were cool when we could find them

 

[dodge man]

Through my job I had to take a couple of safety classes from the railroad to work in the R.O.W. I remember hearing a lot of railroad workers get hit by trains. Usually because they think the train is on another set of rails but it’s on the tracks they are on.