Today, May 28, I was driving east on US Hwy 40 and encountered three parked UP trains. The 1st (most westerly location) was a eastbound loaded coal train with a pusher and two head end units. The train was parked on the main track a few miles west from the nearest siding, with the headlights on but no crew was visable. The next train was encountered about ten miles east from the 1st train and was a westbound empty coal train apparently on a siding but with no headlights on and no crew visable. The 3rd train was a eastbound manifest parked on the main track with no crew visable. It was ten or miles further east from the stopped 2nd train.
As I drove on toward Oakley (about 50 miles) no other trains were observed, and I would certainly have seen one if it existed since Hwy 40 parallells this UP main line very closely.
These trains were all more than 100 miles from any crew change location so it would appear that the crews were picked up, and if so replacement crews would have to be transported. All of this seemed so illogical that I thought I might encounter a derailment or a bridge out of service which would result in this main line between KC and Denver being out of service but nothing was seen as I went east toward Topeka. Perhaps there was trouble between Denver and Kit Carson.
Does anyone have info about this strange (to me) situation?
My guess is that it has to do with the holiday tomorrow somehow--be it gettng the crews home on time or just holding things out of a yard, or both. They'll peobably be there all day tomorrow, at any rate.
Carl
Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)
CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)
Holidays present unique problems for railroads. Their employees think they get to observe the holiday - they tend to 'go into hiding' when subject to call and don't answer the telephone (or any other forms of communication). The companies have their own plans for the Holidays; however those plans get modified by getting employees on the property to execute that plan.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
BaltACD Their employees think they get to observe the holiday -
Some of us do.
#yardjoblife.
The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.
DC: A big part of the headache is getting out of the Denver terminal (North Yard) before running out of hours, compounded by the crew downsizing after the coal train slump.. They tend to fleet trains out of KC and North Yard (rarely out of Oakley anymore)... The crews will pop back on all three and start the process again.
About a dozen years ago UP built a direct link from the Moffat line to the Beltline that bypassed North Yard. Was it built mostly for coal trains, or do some other trains bypass North Yard?
Used for most anything that goes east. Leaves the main track at Utah Junction and heads east, almost on the Denver & Intermountain alignment (including through the station called "Modern") until it reaches the NWDTRR junction with the old DL&NW alignment over a new bridge over BNSF's Front Range Sub)
UP still intends to put back the CRIP alignment through Sandown and the connection with the KP/Limon Sub. .... This includes knocking down a hotel and cleaning up some stupid moves by the C&C of Denver . The sharp curves at the E Denver Belt Connection and Greeley Junction will go away. UP already owns the main track R/W that shortline Denver Rock Island RR runs over. DRIR has an operating easement/ OHrights to reach Sandown Yard, Airlawn and the industrial leads that it still owns and operates.
Lately, UP has posted two flagmen with "Stop" boards at Washington Street for several weeks. Not sure why those guys have been there so long unless the new PTC installation is playing havoc with something in the crossing circuit.
mudchicken Used for most anything that goes east. Leaves the main track at Utah Junction and heads east, almost on the Denver & Intermountain alignment (including through the station called "Modern") until it reaches the NWDTRR junction with the old DL&NW alignment over a new bridge over BNSF's Front Range Sub) UP still intends to put back the CRIP alignment through Sandown and the connection with the KP/Limon Sub. .... This includes knocking down a hotel and cleaning up some stupid moves by the C&C of Denver . The sharp curves at the E Denver Belt Connection and Greeley Junction will go away. UP already owns the main track R/W that shortline Denver Rock Island RR runs over. DRIR has an operating easement/ OHrights to reach Sandown Yard, Airlawn and the industrial leads that it still owns and operates. Lately, UP has posted two flagmen with "Stop" boards at Washington Street for several weeks. Not sure why those guys have been there so long unless the new PTC installation is playing havoc with something in the crossing circuit.
I well remember that sharp curve you mention. I think it was two years ago that the CZ was detoured across Wyoming and, as we left the main UP line we were tilted sharply--and we rocked quite a bit before we reached Utah Junction. It seemed to me that the line needed a bit of surfacing.
Johnny
It depends which fork you take at Belt Junction, left to Sandown or right to Greeley Jcn (then the nasty curve) to go north to Greeley or east to Limon/ south to Denver via Pullman Jcn. .... I would have thought that you might have avoided Belt Jcn altogether on #5 or #6.
We came down from Speer and took that sharp curve and over to Utah Jct. In 2014, when there was a washout east of Moffat, we took the reverse of that to get up to Speer.
I have the impression that this route was necessary because the UP's direct line into the station was broken in favor of the locals who wanted access to the station. Back in the beginning of Amtrak's operation, I was not at all surprised when we ran into the station from Chicago, a UP engine was put on the rear and took us up to Cheyenne--where the engine was run around to the head end. Coming back from the Coast, the process was reversed. I understand that his same procedure was used when the City of Portland ran through Denver
What was the procedure when the City of St. Louis avoided Cheyenne--back into the station in Denver?
Well, there are those who claim "UP" stands for "Unlimited Parking"!
Holidays do bring about manpower issues with crew management. Shutting down the mainline is hard to do espically w/ so many pools now being double ended. It has always been silly to run so many yd jobs and locals on holidays. BNSF did hold in some yd jobs, locals & rd switchers for Good Friday and also this past Memorial day, unlike in yrs past. Hopefuly this will become the new format My late father-in-law worked as as SF Middle Div trainman 1947-1987. Looking at his timebooks, one patttern noticed was he did not work much on Christmas. Most of those yrs he took a layoff (sick) day. When he obtained enough seniority, he simply took one or two wks of vac to finish the yr. His stance was giving the carrier 364 days a yr of himself but not on Christmas.
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