Traction Knowledge

[oubliette]

Given the quite wide and diverse amount of loco's in the US from older models right up to the latest designs, how is an engineer deemed suitable to drive a certain loco. Obviously whilst a lot of features are common, there are design differences.

In the UK a driver has to be assessed on each type of loco they will drive, is this the case in the US. Do you do refresher courses or is all this something you learn as you work your way through the ranks to engineer.

Obviously I am thinking of a scenario where say a train to be relieved turns up with some unusual traction on the point. Will engineers be expected to know all locomotive designs he encounters on the railroad. Do you get passed to drive all designs all at once or is it done in stages and is there a record of type of locomotive you have driven should some official want to check if the drivers know the knowledge of that traction.

Just curious.

[tree68]

I think the AAR has a lot to do with it. In reality (someone correct me if I'm wrong) there are only two basic designs of locomotive controls - the "AAR" stand and the desktop console. Beyond that it comes down to train handling over the route, which is where the engineer has to be sharp, and has to be checked out.

It's really no different than the two basic designs for controlling a car or truck - standard transmission or automatic. The guages move around, some controls may be in different places or have different configurations, and the color might different, but when you get right down to it, if you can drive one car or truck, you can drive them all. The biggest difference is going to be the size of the vehicle and the road you're travelling, just the same as a train.

[wabash1]

Ive never seen anyone drive a train. it is impossible to drive a train.
their are 3 differant types of stand aar then the non -aar and the desk top. Non aar the dynamic and power have a seperate lever to move to get into that function but use the same lever for power or dynamic.

all engines operate the same no need for special training all you need to do is get on and run. or as larry would say get r done

[oubliette]

I can see what your saying about all locomotives having a common features. I can appreciate that, I drive lots of different locomotives at work. I was thinking more of trouble shooting, starting features, circuit breakers, where lube points are, motor isolation switches etc. Having got most operating manuals for locomotives in the US, there are obvious common places where swtiches etc are situated. A general knowledge in advance surely would be an advantage knowing where everything is, especially that one darn little switch that may hidden away in the locomotive. I am quite confident I could drive a US loco with no problems but I would like to know things like where the dead engine***are situated etc without having to go search for it. I'm sure I could find most things given a short while but the knowledge of where they are on all locomotives would be handy. Though I suppose as you work your way up the chain you will get to know all these little things. But what about brand new designs of locomotives, surely someone has to walk you around one for the first time.

Most of the loco's in the UK use a standard set of controls, brake gauges etc but the layout may be completely different. The principle of driving the train is fairly standard. I mean what level of knowledge does an engineer need for each loco. I have been assessed for driving anything on our shed in the UK by our own assessors but certain operators insist their traction department teach you these things before you are allowed to move them.

Its not always possible to do this. One night a few months ago a train operator dumped a unit onto our shed that we do not normally handle. They did not have permission for this and even worse the signal man let them do it. The driver of this unit dumped it right on the main road into the shed blocking alot of traffic on and off the shed. He completely shut the unit down and walked off. I turned up to find this unit there without notice, a call to the train operator said they had no drivers to move it but I told them they were stitching the shed up. We had nothing to couple to it to drag it as it was a unit and we had no others on shed at the time.

I asked the train operator for permission to move this unit as we did do units very similar to this daily. I got the permission and started the unit with no problems, moved it out of the way, shut it down. Its policy in the UK to be tested on traction knowledge of each type of loco driven, whilst some of it will be how a locomotive handles most of it will be locations of switches, isolators etc.

[oubliette]

QUOTE: Originally posted by oubliette

dead engine***

Obviously the word I used (***) has been recognised as possibly rude by this forums database, so I will say dead engine valve/switch. Funny never though about that when writing it, as its a common word here though does have other conitations. Sorry about that.

[daveklepper]

One thing that may be different (other than the UK use of the words "driver" and "driving" as opposed to North American "engineer" and "running" or "operating") is that generally USA locomotives have incremental differences from one type to a more advanced type. Even when huge changes are made in the arrangement of control stands and control desks, it is possible for any engineer to grasp immediately what is each control's purpose and operating characteristics. And GE and EMD have been in business for a long time and evolved slowly enough and are aware of what engineers need. The smaller builders, like Motive Power, are wise enough not to do anything radicallly different.

[oltmannd]

Locomotive Engineer training school goes over all the particulars of each kind of locomotive for all the new hires, but not the gory details of each individual model. The transportation and Mechanical Depts will often distribute operators manual when new loco models are purchased and other literature, but there isn't really any formal retraining done.

It's sort of analogous to automobiles. The basic stuff is pretty much the same and the difference in details can be explored or figured out on the fly.