I lived for many years across the street from a branchline of a small railroad, and clearly remember the crew in the diesel cab only having a bluish glow of the instruments in front of them lighting their faces. I suppose if an engineer had to check say an order he would click the light on to read the paper then turn it back off.
I'll sometimes have the reading light on. Some of the newer ones are dimmable. I've not noticed too much glare from them.
The worst for glare on the windshield are some of the lights on side control stand items and/or the computer displays located on the sides. Especially if the dimmer control isn't working.
Our trailing units at night, unless shut down, are supposed to have some interior cab lights on. It's to provide illumination in case a crew member needs to pass through the cab. Some turn every cab light (the overhead lights, all the reading lights, the nose lights) on. If I need to walk through one like that, I'll turn the engineer's reading light off. I hate having to check my paperwork with a flashlight/pen light because the reading light is out.
Jeff
You don't want many (any?) lights on in the cab at night.
It's hard enough to spot things in the dark, without glare in the cab to make it more difficult.
Gauges and screens, ok. But even they get dimmed a bit...
All the gauges have their own lights, and newer units with computer screens obviously also have their own illumination. Newer units also have a few dim lights along the floor that stay on all the time.
Having the cab interior lights on at night is about as good for visibility as turning on the overhead light in your car.
There is usually a small reading light on each side, sometimes with a glare shield (if it doesn't have one we'll tape a piece of paper around it).
The only time I leave an interior light on while running at night is if the gauge lights are burnt out and I don't have a flashlight.
Greetings from Alberta
-an Articulate Malcontent
I've been stuck at many a grade crossing and don't recall any interior lights on the lead unit but sometimes, very rarely in fact a trailing unit would be lit and sometimes with someone aboard.
Pete.
Just like driving your car at night, enough light is received from in cab instrumentation to operate the locomotive. Additional "room" lighting is available, "on demand".
"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."
I would think the lights would be out in the cab on the prototype. Rapido has lights in the cab but you can turn them out when it is time to advance the throttle.
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
Have never been close to a train at night. Are the interior lights of a locomotive cab turned on during nighttime operation? I would guess not but some model locomotives are lit such as P2K GP30 and Atlas GP 38-2.