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Where can I find examples of "gauntlet" track.

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  • Member since
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Posted by CShaveRR on Tuesday, July 7, 2020 9:00 PM

The Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (South Shore to nearly everyone here) has gauntlet tracks at the Hammond station in Indiana, and probably others, so the passenger trains can get right up to the platforms and the freights can clear them adequately by using the other route.  

There used to be a number of gauntlet bridges in the area east of Chicago.  The South Shore had one in Gary that was the site of a serious collision between two of its passenger trains.  B&OCT had one in Burnham, crossing the Grand Calumet River.  Both of those (and another South Shore bridge, IIRC) have been two-tracked now.  

C&NW's bridge over the Cedar River in Iowa was gauntleted for a while, later made into a single-track bridge, then widened again to two tracks by the UP.

Carl

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CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

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Posted by MikeF90 on Tuesday, July 7, 2020 4:01 PM

Most of the Sonoma Marin Area Rapid Transit ("SMART") stations have gantlet tracks. Here are a couple of Google street view links for Downtown Petaluma and Cotati.

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Posted by Flintlock76 on Tuesday, July 7, 2020 3:49 PM

There's one in Roselle Park NJ, on the NJ Transit Raritan Valley Line.

Here's some shots of the station with the gantlet track.

http://www.subwaynut.com/njt/raritan_valley_line/roselle_park/index.php  

A 28 second video featuring the gantlet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VHb1t9p0d8  

And a video of the gantlet in action. (Not very good, but better than nothing!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oY6OkEh-xvY  

The NJ Transit station in Union has a gantlet track as well.  Here's a vid, a little better than the last one.  Gantlet's on the left.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLgPv9TNJ64  

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Posted by BaltACD on Tuesday, July 7, 2020 1:33 PM

For many years the B&O used a gauntlet track through the Howard Street Tunnel for their freight traffic.  In effect, there were three track routes through the tunnel.  East and Westbound passenger tracks along the sides of the tunnel and the gauntlet track for freight down the center line of the tunnel to take advantage of the peak of the arch of the tunnel in being able to handle freight cars that were higher than passenger cars.

When passenger service from DC to New York was eliminated in 1958, the tunnel was single tracked with the track on the centerline of the tunnel being the only one to remain.  When I worked in Baltimore in the early 70's 17'3" autoracks were allowed the track speed of 25 MPH; 17'5" racks were restricted to 10 MPH.  When I retired, the tunnel had been undercut and notched to be able to handle 19'2" with both autoracks and double stacks.  Still waiting for the work to begin to allow 20' 2" racks and stacks.

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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Posted by Overmod on Tuesday, July 7, 2020 1:14 PM
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Posted by diningcar on Tuesday, July 7, 2020 1:10 PM

At one time the Santa Fe southern 'Transcon' main line bridge over the Missouri River at Sibley (MP 440) was gauntley for its two main tracks. That was discontinued with TCS signalling. Now BNSF is wishing to build a new double track bridge there.

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Posted by SD70Dude on Tuesday, July 7, 2020 12:57 PM

Here is a recently built example, on the ION light rail system in Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario.  They share track with freight trains, which need extra clearance to pass station platforms.  This section opened for service in 2019.

Waterloo ION gauntlet track.jpg

Greetings from Alberta

-an Articulate Malcontent

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Posted by Overmod on Tuesday, July 7, 2020 12:31 PM

At one point Starrucca Viaduct on the Erie was gantleted -- possibly when the first of the true high-speed Super-Power Berks were introduced. Turns out the arrangement was removed later as -- decidedly contrary to the appearance from 'down below'! -- the stone construction happily handled the increased Cooper loading.  The recently-replaced 'temporary' viaduct in upstate New York was iirc gantleted for modern diesels and stack traffic, I think with speed restrictions.

For many years the Poughkeepsie Bridge was gantleted with a hard speed restriction.  Here is one account of that story:

https://books.google.com/books?id=nEU_AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA473&lpg=PA473&dq=new+york+erie+viaduct+gantlet&source=bl&ots=tD6UMG8h-4&sig=ACfU3U3hkM4Nmf8mfqCQ_L6sgfiXAT73Bw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiN8_7p37vqAhUCT98KHT3_ASwQ6AEwEXoECAoQAQ#v=onepage&q=new%20york%20erie%20viaduct%20gantlet&f=false

In Polaritz's book on the P&LE A-2-A Berks he mentions, and pictures, gantlet arrangements on that road.

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Where can I find examples of "gauntlet" track.
Posted by Capt.Brigg on Tuesday, July 7, 2020 12:18 PM

I'm looking for examples of "gauntlet" track, perhaps across a narow bridge where two lines had to merge to use the existing bridge. Such a place will soon exist on my Pacific Cascade Railway in HO gauge. An NP line that almost ran from Yakima to Chehalis, Washington.

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