UlrichI think the engineers make a game of it..
My small town spent a lot time and money getting a quiet zone for the four crossings.
Fairly regularly, a train in the middle of the night will still use the horn at one of the crossings.
The joke here is that the engineer has a girlfriend who lives in town and he's letting her know he's on his way through.
York1 John
I asked my doctor if I gave up delicious food and all alcohol, would I live longer? He said, "No, but it will seem longer."
UlrichThere's a nice motel along the Trans Canada Highway near Edmunston, new Brunswick. Unbeknown to most motorists, the CN mainline runs behind the motel, hidden by a few trees. There's also a little dirt road that veers off the highway and crosses the tracks. And when the train comes through at 2:00 am the engineer blows two longs, a short, and a long, and if you have any room in that motel you're wide awake after that train has passed. I think the engineers make a game of it..
On a vacation about a half century ago - the ex and I stayed at a motel along US 6 near Sandusky, OH - right along the NYC-PC-CR and now NS Main Line from Chicago to Cleveland. The ground rumbled with every passing train - freight and passenger in the days before Amtrak.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
York1The joke here is that the engineer has a girlfriend who lives in town and he's letting her know he's on his way through.
The Detroit Free Press had a column back in the 1960's where readers could write in and ask local interest questions, for which the paper endeavored to get answers. One question involved a siren sounding at a certain location every morning at about the same time.
Long story short - an ambulance crew would go to one of the crew members home for coffee each morning, and a blast of the siren let the wife know they were on their way...
Camping at Deshler, OH, as I try to do each year, is quite the experience. I'm in a tent, so zero sound suppression. The horns are less of an issue than the heavier cars squealing around the transfers/wyes. Loaded coil cars are the worst. I actually do get some sleep.
I usually have the Deshler Cam up on my home computer, and have gotten so that I can usually tell which line (N-S, E-W), and which direction a train is on, based on the horn usage.
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
tree68 ChuckCobleigh Watched that stream for a bit, went back in the playback and after a couple of ore boats came into the harbor, all I can hear is Gordon Lightfoot. Need to catch the "Barker Bark." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzIZbEynCK8 The Arthur Anderson, last ship to see the Fitzgerald, still plies the lakes.
ChuckCobleigh Watched that stream for a bit, went back in the playback and after a couple of ore boats came into the harbor, all I can hear is Gordon Lightfoot.
Need to catch the "Barker Bark." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzIZbEynCK8
The Arthur Anderson, last ship to see the Fitzgerald, still plies the lakes.
Thanks a lot, Tree, you've gotten me hooked on the shipping webcams. Lots of RR action tied into the Duluth/Superior traffic, CN and BNSF. Tons of taconite daily, with some interesting train activity at CN6 in the harbor. Lots of coal and significant wheat and beet pulp. Very busy port until, I guess, the Soo Locks shut down for the winter.
At least the captains abstain from the horn salutes during sleeping hours most of the time.
There's a Facebook group called Boatnerds of Facebook that I'm a member of. Always up to the minute info. Check out boatnerd.com and their AIS map, which shows current ship positions.
What's interesting is that there seem to be a lot more female boatnerds than railfans.
ChuckCobleighAt least the captains abstain from the horn salutes during sleeping hours most of the time.
Salutes are optional - sounding for crossings, not so much.
Another good site for ship traffic is marinetraffic.com, although they recently changed their graphics, and not for the better.
A neat part about AIS is that it generally lists their destination, although some of the destinations are somewhat cryptic. Who knew CASNI means Sarnia???
It took me a little while to figure out until I realized that "CA" is Canada, and then it made sense.
Backshop It took me a little while to figure out until I realized that "CA" is Canada, and then it made sense.
Looking through the ships currently on the lakes, the only really confusing one was "GIGIB," which is apparently Gibraltar. I suspect that the ships using the cryptic designations may be using what may be an older version of the AIS software that limits how many characters can be used. But I don't know that - just guessing.
I've noticed that a lot of boats are slow about putting in their new destination. Their direction is the opposite of what their destination shows. For instance, they'll be on the St Clair River doing 182 degrees and their destination will say "Sault Ste Marie". You don't get many American boats on Ontario, do you?
tree68 Backshop It took me a little while to figure out until I realized that "CA" is Canada, and then it made sense. Looking through the ships currently on the lakes, the only really confusing one was "GIGIB," which is apparently Gibraltar. I suspect that the ships using the cryptic designations may be using what may be an older version of the AIS software that limits how many characters can be used. But I don't know that - just guessing.
The Chessie Car & Train Movement System, had a number of rules to be applied to the display of Origin and Destination Cities as well as the identification of the commodities being carried. There was also a 9 character Consignee field in the record. The Origin & Destination city field consisted of 9 characters along with a 2 character State/Province designator. The Contents was a 6 character field, non-HAZMAT commodities would display something identifying the contents. For HAZMAT the first 6 digits of the STCC (Standard Transportation Commodity Code) for the particular commodity would be displayed. All HAZMAT STCC Codes start with 49. The consignee would be identified by applying a 3-3-3 rule upon the name of the Consignee; same rules applied to the Shipper, however, once the car left the Shippers property most job catagories didn't concern themselves with it. The migration to the CSX Car & Train system applied the STCC code for all commodities to the contents field.
Until one became familiar with the merchandise handled in an area, viewing the various fields could be confusing at first sight.
York1 Ulrich I think the engineers make a game of it.. My small town spent a lot time and money getting a quiet zone for the four crossings. Fairly regularly, a train in the middle of the night will still use the horn at one of the crossings. The joke here is that the engineer has a girlfriend who lives in town and he's letting her know he's on his way through.
Ulrich I think the engineers make a game of it..
Or maybe the engine drivers' resentment at working at 2am is the motivation for unnecessary (but legal) horn blowing. "Wake all those f***ing suburbanites."
charlie hebdo York1 Ulrich I think the engineers make a game of it.. My small town spent a lot time and money getting a quiet zone for the four crossings. Fairly regularly, a train in the middle of the night will still use the horn at one of the crossings. The joke here is that the engineer has a girlfriend who lives in town and he's letting her know he's on his way through. Or maybe the engine drivers' resentment at working at 2am is the motivation for unnecessary (but legal) horn blowing. "Wake all those f***ing suburbanites."
If he thinks we're suburbanites, he's got more problems than where to blow the horn.
The nearest town over 10,000 people is over fifty miles away. We are making progress, though -- my town does have a stoplight.
Late at night, I think there's a better chance of them blowing for a drunk driver who went around the gates.
Backshop Late at night, I think there's a better chance of them blowing for a drunk driver who went around the gates.
With the curbs, posts, and gates installed when it became a quiet zone, even a drunk driver would have trouble getting onto the crossing.
A drunk driver for a one-time horn -- maybe.
A drunk driver getting onto the crossing night after night at the same time -- unlikely.
I prefer the more romantic explanation -- his girlfriend appreciates his thinking of her.
Until they change the federal regulations, all crossings get the horn from me. Some moreso than others.
This time of year, the last thing I need 500+ passengers on a Polar Express train having as part of their memory of the trip the car the train hit.
There's a couple of places I tend to lay off just a bit as there are residences near the tracks in a somewhat built-up area (ie, a hamlet or small village).
Normally the line we run the trips on sees no more than 1 - round trips per week, mostly during the day. Our last PE train of the night is back in the station by 8:30 PM.
Otherwise, it's 15-20 seconds worth, per the regs.
BackshopLate at night, I think there's a better chance of them blowing for a drunk driver who went around the gates.
Horn doesn't know or care who hears it - it just HOPES people hear its warning and don't end up a statistic.
Three railroads and 9 crossings within a half-mile or so of my house make my small town a noisy place sometimes. That's why I especially appreciate the one CSX engineer who generally passes through town in the wee hours; his four honks are noticably brief. Some engineers laying on the horn on a quiet summer night when the windows are open can really overdo it.
NKP guy Three railroads and 9 crossings within a half-mile or so of my house make my small town a noisy place sometimes. That's why I especially appreciate the one CSX engineer who generally passes through town in the wee hours; his four honks are noticably brief. Some engineers laying on the horn on a quiet summer night when the windows are open can really overdo it.
I've probably already mentioned "Engineer Shorttoot" with the nightly "tacos" through Deshler - Five crossings in about a mile. He was always brief. He's retired now, but others have followed his lead.
As you note, though, some engineers seem to "tie the whistle cord down," no matter the hour.
I was getting rocked regularly at a lone house along the tracks. Around three AM one night I blew the horn just about continously for about a mile approaching the house. No more rocks.
Many years ago, I had occasion to make a night time movement on our RR, which normally never sees overnight traffic. For the most part, I tried to keep the horn noise to a minimum. However, on the return trip, the brakeman in the cab noted that one crossing was near his ex-girlfriend's house and requested I provide an extra noisy salute to her. I obliged. It was about 3:00 AM.
adkrr64the brakeman in the cab noted that one crossing was near his ex-girlfriend's house and requested I provide an extra noisy salute to her. I obliged. It was about 3:00 AM.
A similar anecdote: Some 16 years ago I was aboard The Three Rivers coming home from NYC about 4 AM. Since the train passed through my town and two blocks away from my house before my stop in Akron 20 minutes later, I asked the conductor to ask the engineer to lay on the horn for the Summit Street crossing so my wife would know that was my train and when I'd be home.
In the event, the engineer complied with zest--he must have awakened the entire city! It was wonderful and awful all at once!
The wife? Didn't hear a thing; all that long & loud honking was lost on her!
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