JPS1Afternoon temperatures in central and south Texas have been around 101 to 103 degrees Fahrenheit this week. When it gets this hot, do the railroads step up track inspections? If so, how do they perform them?
Don't know what UP or BNSF procedures in Texas are. On CSX MofW personnel contact the Train Dispatcher for authority to hi-rail the territory. Instructions to Dispatchers when I was employed was that MofW would 'get the railroad' when they asked for it for either Heat or Cold inspections. Logic being - better to delay trains waiting on MofW to inspect territory than to run the trains operate and find the problems with catastrophic consequences.
Not being in MofW - I do not know the specific indicators that MofW are looking for in their inspections, beyond obvious sun kinks. mudchicken can fill in the details.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
Once you exceed 95 degrees or are at 20 degrees over neutral rail laying temperature you are out there until dark or when the rail temp is 20 degrees below neutral.
Track supervisor is out there looking for snaky rail, excessive cant or rail up in the plates. There are chief engineers instructions out there for what to do when the heat gets excessive over a period of days.
If the DS does not give the TS time to inspect, the roadmaster or division engineer can step in and take the track away from the DS or the train can follow the TS at restricted speed under joint limits. (Usually both sides play nice, but just witnessed a division engineer step-in out here)
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