http://www.chicagonow.com/dennis-byrnes-barbershop/2011/11/what-chicago-to-st-louis-high-speed-rail-will-look-like/
Looks like some spikes and ties are needed in a few spots....
Reminds me of some industry track on the south side of Milwaukee I used to switch at. The tracks were so bad that every time we went to switch them, a track worker would accompany us to help with the inevitable derailment.
Jesus, Mary and Joseph! I feel sorry for the engineer, especially his kidneys!
Industrial trackage laid in a peat bog, without benefit of any sub-grade stabilization or ballast. Peat is not stable for construction purposes. Once the peat is mined out, the line will be picked up and moved to another area of the bog - or just allowed to sink out of sight.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
Can't decide whether this guy has an axe to grind or a razor to strop. But he's clearly very opinionated.
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)
Narrow gauge - note the width of the locomotive as compared the the engineer inside, and also the height/ width ratio of the cab. Note also how far the ties extend beyond the rails = more surface area for support, hence less pressure per sq. ft. or sq. meter, etc.
More importantly, this just demonstrates how forgiving / tolerant the technology is of irregular track, even allowing for the exaggeration caused by the telephoto lens and the speeded-up/ time-compressed video clip.
- Paul North.
Trackage is representative of temporary industrial trackage that is laid into areas to remove mineral and natural resources from a area. Many of the logging railroads that got laid into the forests to expedite the removal of timber had trackage of similar characteristics. Trackage into such areas is expected to have a short life span, as the resources that are being harvested will be exhausted in the short term
Paul_D_North_Jr More importantly, this just demonstrates how forgiving / tolerant the technology is of irregular track, even allowing for the exaggeration caused by the telephoto lens and the speeded-up/ time-compressed video clip. - Paul North.
Paul_D_North_Jr Narrow gauge - note the width of the locomotive as compared the the engineer inside, and also the height/ width ratio of the cab. Note also how far the ties extend beyond the rails = more surface area for support, hence less pressure per sq. ft. or sq. meter, etc. More importantly, this just demonstrates how forgiving / tolerant the technology is of irregular track, even allowing for the exaggeration caused by the telephoto lens and the speeded-up/ time-compressed video clip. - Paul North.
Yes, I make "Das 900 MM" to translate to a 3 foot gauge.
I grew up in Manito, IL (pop. about 1,000). We had a similar narrow gauge peat hauling rail system northeast of town. It took the dirt to the "Manito Chemical Company" facility that everybody called the "Dirt Factory." The little railroad was universally called "The Dinky." The company and the railroad shut down when I was very young so I don't remember all that much. I do remember seeing a little train once.
The last time I was back home the old abandoned dirt factory still stood. The rail lines were taken up, but their memory lives on in the name of a drainage ditch. The rail line ran along side the ditch and to this day that ditch is "The Dinky Ditch".
Here is some bad track on the ex-M&StL line from Minneapolis to Watertown, SD sometime fairly recently. It starts at 00:35 seconds. The first bit is on the ex-Milwaukee Road. This strikes me as an incredible risk of spending a lot more money picking up derailed cars than it would cost to improve this spot.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g11qWro1LzQ
Repairing such a spot requires a whole lot more effort than a couple of cars of ballast, a tamper and a track gang for a day or two. The problems of that bad spot have occurred way down in the sub-grade of that track segment. Without knowing the geology of that spot, who know what kinds of remedial engineering will need to be applied to bring it up to acceptable 'branch line' standards. We could be talking from $500K to $2M or more to make that area acceptable for 25 MPH service.
Bucyrus Here is some bad track on the ex-M&StL line from Minneapolis to Watertown, SD sometime fairly recently. It starts at 00:35 seconds. The first bit is on the ex-Milwaukee Road. This strikes me as an incredible risk of spending a lot more money picking up derailed cars than it would cost to improve this spot. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g11qWro1LzQ
Knowing no more than what has been posted above, I would not want to be standing anywhere near the track as a train came by, though it is obvious that the engineer knows how to operate the engine.
Johnny
Actualy, the widith of the tires makes very little differnce in the psi on the rail head. All that wheel hanging outside the rail transfers no weight to the rail, but it does make it very forgiving of poor gauge. It would take very wide gauge for them to fall through onto the ties. The gauge of the wheelsets is also much less than the 900mm stated in the viedo. This helps with the tight turns and tight gauge.
Tim
The Watertown-area track isn't that much worse than the Northwestern's mainline through downtown Appleton, WI back in the 70's. How those Algoma Central high-sided wood chip cars would rock! Individual logs would be slung from open-sided pulpwood cars. Rail joints would pump up and down like crazy.
I have seen a lot of bad track, and it is amazing how the cars can stay on the rails, but I have never seen anything as bad as those dips in the TC&W video on the MVRR starting at 1:16. That is worse than narrow gage yard tracks in China.
The cars and locomotives have an uncanny ability to stay on the rails, but if the dips get bad enough, they tip a rail over or break it. Or they just spread the gage and drop onto the ties.
Dennis Byrne is a great example of a feature writer with such an overwhelming need to push his agenda that he posts a picture that has nothing to do with the headline/caption.
C&NW, CA&E, MILW, CGW and IC fan
Rikers Yard [snipped; emphasis added - PDN] Actualy, the widith of the tires makes very little differnce in the psi on the rail head. All that wheel hanging outside the rail transfers no weight to the rail, but it does make it very forgiving of poor gauge. . . .
When you have a little time to spare, get on yahoo and check out the trackage on one segment of the Carolina Southern. By the way, they still have an operational F unit.
I remember standing on the platform of the Rantoul, IL station watching IC/ICG trains come through. The locomotives would be swaying back and forth so badly that I occasionally wondered if they were going to straighten up or keep tipping over.
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 I remember standing on the platform of the Rantoul, IL station watching IC/ICG trains come through. The locomotives would be swaying back and forth so badly that I occasionally wondered if they were going to straighten up or keep tipping over.
The sway was certainly sufficient to clear off the control stand.
We had a yard track that got real bad. Drainage issues, mostly. At the worst point, there was probably 30' of rail that wasn't attached to anything as the ties were all rotted away. We were taking 2 GPs over it (both facing the same way) and I looked out the back window. That's when I saw the headlight of the second engine peeking around the first. That's pretty bad.
The track finally got fixed when one of the crews hit the ground there.
It's been fun. But it isn't much fun anymore. Signing off for now.
The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.t fun any
Watching 3' gauge trains running on such bad track....I just can't imagine what keeps the {extra wide units for the 3'}, upright. Such swinging and bouncing and swaying....I'm sure, under these situations the ties and spikes are really not up to specs., so the rail can't be securely held as it should be...why doesn't the rail roll.....?
With the center of gravity being up off the rails quite a bit, and the slow roll when hitting a very low spot...It seems to defy gravity.
Remember seeing a normal size modern engine in Trains mag. in some article back several months...it was in some other country that they then installed the 3' trucks. Even setting still....that was difficult for me to understand how such a wide vehicle of such weight could survive and stay on the rails. The appearance in the photo made it look so top heavy with such narrow gauge trucks under it.
Quentin
Woops, sorry, I misunderstood what I thought you said! Saw ties and thought tires. Some people refer to that part of the wheel as a tire even though it is not a separate part. Your right about the cast wheels. Sometimes stamped steel wheels are used also.
Our community is FREE to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account.