Sooo, how do they keep the water out from the grain cars? I suspect that not all those seals are A1 Water tight.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6UEWRrrIz0
I'm sorry that I can't answer your question but I have another that would apply to this situation. Would the railroad send a hi-railer or some other vehicle over the flooded tracks to ensure that there were no washouts?
CMStPnPSooo, how do they keep the water out from the grain cars? I suspect that not all those seals are A1 Water tight. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6UEWRrrIz0
I don't know CPKC's rules for operating through water over top of the rail.
When I was working, CSX allowed movement with water at 2 inches above the top of the rail. These rules are based on keeping water out of the traction motors.
While I haven't measured, it would appear that the bottom outlets on covered hoppers are in the order of four to six inches above the top of the rail.
At known locations with water issues MofW will inspect the conditions to determine if it is safe to operate trains.
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In all the official railroad documents I've seen, modern or back to the first diesel electrics, 3 inches is the maximum depth above the rail that's allowed. I imagine even that is only done to avoid stranding a train in flood waters. Once the water goes over the top of the rail they probably shut down the track.
High water in the Quad Cities and Muscatine areas is almost a yearly given. It's more unusual not to have flooding of some sort in those areas.
Jeff
The daily track inspection would be made with a hyrailer. The water isn't flowing very hard like would be seen with flash flooding.
So if this is to be a mainline going forward, wouldn't this be a candidate for a track-raising party?
Gramp So if this is to be a mainline going forward, wouldn't this be a candidate for a track-raising party?
Depends a lot on how often such water levels are expected.
Early in the video I noticed a traffic sign indicating that the tracks were right next to the road, with a road taking off to the right. We've seen what happens in such situations where raising the tracks over time create an opportunity to high-center longer vehicles. Also a consideration.
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...
CP conducted a major track raising project in the Quad Cities area during the floods back in 2019.
https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/15-cp-raises-track-to-get-around-iowa-flooding/
Must have worked, because I never heard anything about CPKC having to shutdown operations with this year's flooding.
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