QUOTE: Originally posted by Underw8 I have to disagree slightly with the statement that "There is no such thing as relief crews." In a large metropolitan area, such as NYC, Philly, Baltimore, etc. a relief crew would be a 2-man crew (engineer/brakeman) who takes engines to the shop for service. Perhaps it has brake problems; maybe it is due for its service, which is done at the main engine housing. HOWEVER: the relief crew cannot go beyond the Yard Limits board (either direction.) The relief crew picks up the engine(s) at "point a" and transports them to the local engine house. After which, they may also take another engine(s) back to the yard where it obtained the unit(s) it picked up earlier -- IF it didn't take replacement units to the yard on the way to pick up the one requiring service. The relief crew can also be used to transport the engine(s) from a train whose crew reached the limit of Hours of Service Law while in the yard, and before taking engine(s) to shop. Hope this clarifies how the term "relief crew" differs from "dog catchers," or "outlaw relief" for trains which are caught on the line of road (main) due to a crewmember's time (hours of service) expiring.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
QUOTE: Originally posted by ValleyX Relief crews, outlaw relief, dog catchers, and bear crews to relieve the bears that died in the woods. Anybody know any other terms?
ChuckAllen, TX
Collin ,operator of the " Eastern Kentucky & Ohio R.R."
QUOTE: Originally posted by andrewjonathon From reading different threads, it seems like it is pretty common for trains to get parked out on the 'road' due to the crew hitting the maximum allowable hours of service. What is a relief crews work day like? After they have rescued a train whose crew went dead before reaching the terminal, is the relief crew's workday over or do they have to relieve multiple trains in a single shift? If their day consists only of bringing a single train into the terminal, it seems like it could be a pretty short shift at times given how close many of the dead trains get to tne next terminal. Also, how common is if for train crews to go dead before reaching the terminal? Is it as common as it seems? It seems like this represent a large cost to railroad companies. Thanks
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