There's still plenty of that kind of work going on.
Lots of places getting two centerbeams of lumber, a place getting a single propane tank, a couple boxcars full of bricks, and on and on. For instance, the huge facility where they print the Washington Post sees less paper than it used to see, so they've diversified what they handle at that site. There's paper boxcars, lumber transload, and even reefers. Never more than two or three of each kind too. I'd say about half the non-passenger traffic past my office is manifest freights. Always wonder where those blocks of tanks full of molten sulphur are going.
LensCapOnSince carload freight and the way freight is largely gone from the prototype, what operating fun is left for the contemporary modeler?
Who ever told you that knows very little about today's railroads.The local is far from gone and can be seen on every major railroad. Short lines and terminal roads makes their living by these single car load shipments.
Loose car shipments is still popular and can be seen in every freight train.
Take a few minutes and see what today's railroading is about as far as cars being handled.
http://www.railroadpm.org/Performance%20Reports/NS.aspx
As far as operation it hasn't changed much over the years since hot intermodal, freight trains,coal drags,reefer trains,locals,ore and coke trains,grain trains,tank car trains,steel trains,circus trains,passenger trains still ply the rails on a daily bases. Then there are special moves like rail trains,MOW trains,Herzog ballast trains etc.
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
Take a look at Lance Mindheim's Miami industrial spur layout in the December 2013 MR.
For a western version, the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center a few miles east of Reno, Nevada is a prime example of local switching. I've been work on several projects at the NV Energy power plant across UP's transcon mainline from the TRIC. The TRIC industrial Spurs have 2.3% grades and numerous 10 degree horseshoe curves climbing up to the higher industrial plots. The TRIC is switched by both UP and BNSF. It's neat to see two third generation diesels in war bonnet or patched SP paint taking a one or two car train up to the industries. Major customers include pet food manufacturing, building supplies, oil/fuel terminal, and numerous warehouse/distribution centers. All this against the backdrop of the transcontinental mainline with the daily eastbound and westbound California Zeyphers. The TRIC would make an excellent prototype to model.
Ray
The Las Vegas Valley isn't exactly a hotbed of industry, but in my fairly immediate vicinity there are three little appendices off the UP's LA&SL route. One, which would make a near-ideal shelf layout, handles propane, plastic pellets and the 'makins' for paper cups. It also has a team track. Another serves a number of sign-free warehouse type buildings. The third, a multi-track reverse loop (!!) seems to handle intermodal as well as serving a concrete batch plant. A few miles farther north there's a lo-o-ong spur (or short branch) to a wallboard factory.
Note that none of these could handle a unit train except, possibly, that intermodal multi-loop -and even then, it would have to be split onto several tracks.
Since there are different cars at the various spots each time I drive past I would say that there are some local switch crews busy at 0-dark-hundred. Hearing the occasional horn at two-ish AM reinforces that. All of the mainline crossings are grade separated.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964 - without a lot of local switching)
Here in Richardton, we have an ethanol plant, corn in, ethanol, and brewer's yeast out. It was more interesting when they were still a coal fired plant and also received coal trains in. Right next dor to them a new yard was built and at the moment pipes are arriving, not full trains, but perhaps strings of 20 cars at a time. Each of those cars will equal about three or four trucks leaving town once the pipe starts going out to new pipe lines.
On the other side of town, Halliburton is building a sand depot, it will take in 100 car unit trains of fracking sand, and will dispatch perhpas 200 trucks of sand daily. The mainline switches to this plant are part of the CTC system and are signald and controlled at Ft. Worth. Inside the plant the switches are manual, and so I presume that a switch tender will drive around the property aligning the switches prior to the expected arrival or departure of a unit train to or from the main line. Both to the east and west of our town are grain elevators, both deal in unit trains of grain/hoppers. There is a brick factory in Hebron which ships by the car load.
ROAR
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
BroadwayLionEach of those cars will equal about three or four trucks leaving town once the pipe starts going out to new pipe lines.
That's one major reason single car shipments is still a popular way to ship since it lowers shipping costs.
Here in Boise, the only traffic is a UP local that passes through town, on its way to points east, and the Boise Valley RR local, which serves the industries in town as well as all to the west for about 30 miles. The BV local runs Monday, Wednesday and Friday and usually carries a consist of anywhere from 7 to 30 or so cars. It serves several lumber yards, a tank farm for gasoline and other petroleum, a propane dealer and a team track. That's just here in Boise. There are two other medium-sized municipalities just west of Boise which it also serves.
Heck, in my neck of the woods, there are no mainline freight trains at all today. Just local freights. I live on Amtrak's NEC, and while we have plenty of passenger trains (both Amtrak and MBTA), mainline freight trains are a thing of the past around here. We do have several local freights that run around, switching out the local industrial parks and running down to another cluster of locals. Since the Conrail breakup, CSX has only assigned GP40-2's to our area, and they are down here switching daily.
These guys routinely have to work around Amtrak and the MBTA trains...they actually run the local freights during the middle of the day.
Paul A. Cutler III
LensCapOn Since carload freight and the way freight is largely gone from the prototype, what operating fun is left for the contemporary modeler? It seems it’s almost all bulk shipments these days, coal, oil, stack train, none of them really have switching or do pickups or set asides between loading and destination. I like watching trains but….., that still is not as much fun as actual switching while trying to work around main line trains coming through. (might have to back date some.
It's true that there is less retail railroading these days than in the past but it hasn't disappeared. A lot of it is being done on branchlines where commodities are collected for those unit trains that run on the main trunk lines. Others have already pointed out cases where one or a few cars are being spotted.
There is an Ohio Central branchline that passes through my little town of Utica, Oh on its way up to Mt. Vernon where there is a large grain elevator. There is also one in Utica. Although I have never seen the one in Utica switched I'm assuming it is served since it is right next to the branchline. Typically one train a day goes up to Mt. Vernon and back with a dozen or less boxcars. About a week ago for the first time I saw about a half dozen black tank cars in the train which was a surprise to me since I wasn't aware of another facility being serviced by that train. Does anyone know if a grain elevator would have need for tank cars or is this an indication that there is another customer that I am unaware of.
jecorbett Does anyone know if a grain elevator would have need for tank cars or is this an indication that there is another customer that I am unaware of.
Absolutely! Farmers sell grain to the elevator, but they also buy seed and fertilizer at the elevator. Tank cars of anhydrous amonia will be regular visitors at these elevators.
Where I live there are heaps of through trains of all types -- coal, COFC, automobiles, plus mixed of all sorts. There is a local that works out of town to service several elevators. We even have a short line junction.
But, to the OP, what we don't have are the way freights that start at A, work their way to Z, stopping at every town along the way to drop off or pick up a car or two. Even cars for the local are whole blocks of traffic. So in a way the OP is correct in that if you modeled this town realistically, there would be a lot of coming and going, but very little switching to do. A single loop of track to a big staging yard would be the perfect replica of this action, though we're not supposed to do that.
jim
As some have pointed out, modern does involve some switching carloads etc., so three is still operational interest for modern railroading.
And there is nothing from keeping you from modeling "the good ol days" and picking something you like from a certain era if you think thats going to bring you more enjoyment. Up to you really.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
riogrande5761 As some have pointed out, modern does involve some switching carloads etc., so three is still operational interest for modern railroading. And there is nothing from keeping you from modeling "the good ol days" and picking something you like from a certain era if you think thats going to bring you more enjoyment. Up to you really.
Absolutely. That's why I model the mid 1950s. A little bit of everything that appeals to me. While passenger trains were beginning to decline they still included long distance limiteds, locals, and commuters. Even a few mixed trains. Just about every kind of freight from pedders to unit trains and hotshots. Steam and diesel locos shared the rails and freight trains had a caboose on the end which is as it should be. There is no wrong choice of eras but modern railroading just isn't for me.
Many locals use a caboose because they reverse move back to the yard from a industrial lead.Many of these cabooses are still fully functional except the toilet..The toilet ,btw, was never used when I worked on the railroad other then a place to store extra fusees.
"Where I live there are heaps of through trains of all types -- coal, COFC, automobiles, plus mixed of all sorts. There is a local that works out of town to service several elevators. We even have a short line junction.
But, to the OP, what we don't have are the way freights that start at A, work their way to Z, stopping at every town along the way to drop off or pick up a car or two. Even cars for the local are whole blocks of traffic. So in a way the OP is correct in that if you modeled this town realistically, there would be a lot of coming and going, but very little switching to do. A single loop of track to a big staging yard would be the perfect replica of this action, though we're not supposed to do that. '
As a single opporator, "The Plan" was always for a big loop to parade trains while having local switching to make it interesting. I'm now down to having a (ginormous) flour elevator, bulk food terminal, and a bulk transfer site as possibilites. I hope they will be enough. It is so different from the high steam era where through freights would be switched at every division yard (the simple view there. I know it was more than that).
Still do love the modern stuff!
It seems that there's PLENTY of operations to replicate on a moden layout (which is what I run). I think that the amount of operations on a layout is based on numerous factors, size/type of industries, area of the country, size of layout, etc.
While true that there are unit trains for coal and oil, grain/food is just one industry that offers a variety of differnt cars. Also, you can model uncommon industries (e.g., a junk/scrap yard).
The contemporary modeler (myself included) has PLENTY of options. While you might have to do a bit more research, discovering new information is quite fun. Also, try to find that "I didn't know that" moment each week when looking.
LensCapOnBut, to the OP, what we don't have are the way freights that start at A, work their way to Z,
I suspect you better not tell NS that.. They run a local from Columbus to Marion and the Marion local works it way to Bucyrus.
There are other examples of these types of locals on NS and CSX.
Hi, I tend to agree with the OP, but if you model the 1950s (as I do), it is not a problem.
ENJOY !
Mobilman44
Living in southeast Texas, formerly modeling the "postwar" Santa Fe and Illinois Central
mobilman44 Hi, I tend to agree with the OP, but if you model the 1950s (as I do), it is not a problem.
Its not a problem modeling today's railroads if one understands nothing has change much in the way of operation.
Modeling a modern short line is bare bone back alley railroadin' just as it was years ago..