Although the clickity clack is nice, I prefer the trains going faster. The UP press release said that the max speed for the line will be 50mph, and they were at least going 45mph 2 nights ago. Amazingly, even though the CWR has been in for at least a month and 1/2, that is the first train I have seen on the line since the jointed was removed.
Another side note, about 3 weeks ago I saw a unit coal train sitting in Adams yard, on the south track ready to go out. According to wisrail, coal trains are rare on the line. Maybe since the CWR is going in in more places, they can run these trains through. Just a thought...
Phil
It never fails to amaze me how some people today equate jointed rail to bad track. It just aint so folks - jointed rail if properly maintained has the same load carrying and smooth riding capability as CWR of the same weight. Admittedly this requires keeping the fish plates (I still call them that) and bolts tight, the right number of rail anchors, the ballast and subgrade drainage up to snuff and replacing split or rotten ties particularly at the rail joints. On high traffic density lines this does add up to higher maintenance costs which is why we see CWR on the heavily trafficed main lines. IMHO rail end batter need not be a major problem and is mostly a function of poor tie condition or drainage problems that result in "soft" spots at a rail end. Hell I've ridden the Cities of Miami and New Orleans many times as speed of 115 mph on all jointed rail and the ride was smooth as glass and that was on trackage that took a real pounding from the steam locomotives that at the time headed all the many IC freight trains. What say you Mudchicken?
Mark
There's the rub, Mark--"properly maintained". You don't have the human forces watching and adjusting the track all the time that you did when the IC was good for 115 m.p.h. I remember tales of trains tearing across the CNW at 90 after the 4R upgrading, but probably still on jointed rail during the Wolfe-Zito era.
And (I think it's safe to say now), I've ridden freights on the GTW at over 60 on jointed rail when the speed limit of the line was 45, and clocked a Mohawk I was riding at over 100 (on 79-mph track) when welded rail was a novelty--definitely not underneath us!
Welded rail is acceptable now--to find main lines with jointed rail, however well maintained, suggests that the rail is probably 25 or more years old, with whatever wear that "seniority" would create.
Carl
Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)
CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)
This brings up an interesting, yet slightly unrelated topic...speed restrictions.
Are engineers closely held to the speed limits/restrictions than in the past?
Also, any update on my previous question about how often UP changes out CWR on the Nebraska lines?
ed
wgnrr wrote: Although the clickity clack is nice, I prefer the trains going faster. The UP press release said that the max speed for the line will be 50mph, and they were at least going 45mph 2 nights ago. Amazingly, even though the CWR has been in for at least a month and 1/2, that is the first train I have seen on the line since the jointed was removed.Another side note, about 3 weeks ago I saw a unit coal train sitting in Adams yard, on the south track ready to go out. According to wisrail, coal trains are rare on the line. Maybe since the CWR is going in in more places, they can run these trains through. Just a thought...Phil
CWR could mean trains would go faster and hence arrive in altoona before dark? we might get more coal trains too? then i'm all for it! really i'm indifferent at this point. jointed rail or CWR both have their advantages and disadvantage
Your friendly neighborhood CNW fan.
MP173 wrote: This brings up an interesting, yet slightly unrelated topic...speed restrictions.Are engineers closely held to the speed limits/restrictions than in the past?
I'd have to say yes. Technology has a lot to do with it - between GPS and radar, it's much easier to track the speed of a locomotive than it was in the days when you counted telephone poles...
An anecdote in Trains some years ago spoke of the instructions given to the engineer of one of NYC's crack trains departing Grand Central - "Do not arrive at Albany before xx:xx."
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...
CShaveRR wrote: There's the rub, Mark--"properly maintained". You don't have the human forces watching and adjusting the track all the time that you did when the IC was good for 115 m.p.h. I remember tales of trains tearing across the CNW at 90 after the 4R upgrading, but probably still on jointed rail during the Wolfe-Zito era.
Carl,
You're absolutely right about that. You may remember, as I do, the time when "Trackwalkers" literally walked the main lines carrying a spike maul and wrench on their shoulder looking for and tightening loose bolts and driving down spikes that were coming up. Labor was cheap in those days and it certainly did require more of it to keep jointed trackage in tip top shape. Today you just don't see a hi-railer stopping every few feet to drive down a loose spike which is why even on CWR main lines there are often many spikes whose heads are 4 inches above the base of the rail.
Just as location, location, location is key to real estate sales; it's drainage, drainage, drainage when it comes to track maintenance. This applies to CWR lines also but is even more important with jointed rail. Of course even CWR has some joints in the vicinity of turnouts and where breaks are required for signalling circuitry. It's at these joints where you're likely to get "mud pumping" because of poor sub surface drainage. I shudder every time I see MOW spread ballast and run the tamper right up to a grade crossing then stop and resume on the other side rather than taking up and working through the crossing. It's a penny wise and pound foolish practice and almost guarantees there will be a soft spot at that point. This is why you so often see cars bouncing and swaying as they pass over a crossing.
Over the years a broken rail was probably the leading cause of so many disastrous wrecks. Fortunately advances in rail metallurgy and manufacture have largely eliminated that. I haven't seen it recently, but at one time it was common to have a joint of rail stored (usually setting on concrete posts) every few miles along the line so it was handy when needed to replace a broken rail. The thermite welds used today to repair a CWR rail break if properly done are stronger than the adjacent rail. Taking short cuts like cutting out the broken section with a torch rather than sawing it are a definite no no. This was the cause of the Texas Eagle wreck a few years ago on the MoPac in east Texas that resulted in the death of several passengers.
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