Any Train Dispatchers here?

[Anonymous]

I go to training this fall.
Any advice for a greenhorn?

[Anonymous]

Ney-

So I guess this means you got a job as a DS or at least a DSt. Congratulations. Where and with who? I would suggest from the perspective of an operating guy that you get a map of every foot of your territory and know the location of every switch and signal. I'm not sure who you will be working for, but, if possible I suggest you ride as much of your territory as possible with a train crew. It will be a BIG help in understanding what you are doing.

DS are like anybody else, it takes a while to break in. Many times I have had DS, especially new ones or those unfamiliar to the territory try to have me make a move that is not physically possible (i.e. a track needed for the move was no longer there).

Just be aware it is a highly stressful job and you will be on four or five phone lines at once and the radio while trying to watch four or five CRTs in front of you. Supervision will be right in the room with you and you will be at least able to ask some questions. Just watch the smoking and alcohol and also coffee. Don't mix coffee and aspirin (recipie for an ulcer).

Good Luck.

LC

[JoeKoh]

congrats on your new job
keep us posted
stay safe
Joe

[Anonymous]

These are the basics I learned as a train dispatcher:

1. If you're unsure about something, stop! Go ask the chief. Ask questions of other dispatchers. Listen carefully.

2. Take the safe course always. The railroad will still be there tomorrow, but dead people don't come back to life. If your actions cause someone harm, you'll have to live with that the rest of your life. I can't emphasize this enough.

3. You can only do one thing at a time. If you lose concentration, slow down or stop until you get it back.

4. The easiest way for a dispatcher to get in trouble is with his mouth. The CTC, TWC, or DTC machine won't make mistakes, but YOU can override it and make a big one. Protect, then authorize.

5. When you're on the road, ask a lot of questions. Find out how train crews get paid: how many work events they're allowed under the basic contract, etc. Find out the sidings they don't like to stop in; the problem grade crossings, etc.

6. Treat everyone with respect and always be polite.

7. Never lose your cool. If you're frustrated, stop for a minute and cool off.

8. Don't be in a hurry to mark up. This is not a manhood thing.

9. It's not your railroad, it's theirs. If your chief tells you to do something you don't think is sensible, voice your concerns once only. If he doesn't budge, do what he tells you to do. You'll avoid a lot of frustration this way.

10. A lot of people find out the job is not for them. There's no shame in quitting.

11. Keep your train crews informed of what's going to happen to them next at all times. Happy train crews are your best friend.

12. Yardmasters, maintainers, and trainmasters have different priorities. Work with them and respect them, but don't let them run your main line for you.

As you learn the job, you'll learn to develop a plan, how to anticipate things, how to think ahead. But that all comes later with experience.

[dehusman]

Finish what you start.
Use the tools.
Don't assume.
You are the protector.

[PNWRMNM]

Mark Hemphill's advice is a masterpiece. Engrave it on you heart.

Mac

[Anonymous]

Take it easy on the coffee?
isnt that the staple of shift workers everywhere?
LOL!

[kenneo]

ney .....

A tough (sometimes) but also rewarding position. Mark's info is "apples of silver on a platter of gold" ... treat it as such.

Further words on point 11, however. Just as keeping the crews ifnormed of what's going on, you can tell them too much, also. By this, I mean train movements that you plan or a condition you believe to exist that doesn't, and they don't pan out AND the crew(s) act on your comments as if you had made them "law". Crews are cautioned not to act on any instructions given to another crew, but sometimes they do. This is part of the "protect, then authorize (#4)". With train orders and track warents transmitted by radio, this can be a real problem and I suspect the cause of many of the collisions in the mid-west of late years. The other caution, is not to say something is a certain way when it may not be. For example, your board mayt ell you that a train has a green signal. Even should they ask you, don't tell them anything other than "You may have a restricting signal" which tells them a stop may be in the offing. The only thing I ever did otherwise in this situation was for a train that had ben held for an extended period was to tell them "Eyes front. I have programed a signal less restrictive than what you have. Let me know if you don't get it."

As others have said, let us know how it goes, with whom (RR) and where. It would be neat to hear from you as you learn the new things in your future.

[Anonymous]

I can't recall a collision in recent years caused by a train crew taking a dispatcher's advisory statement as something more than it was intended, but I could be wrong. The key here is never to give a train verbal information about signal indications. The dispatcher's console doesn't show signal indications anyway, only requests.

However, there's plenty of other information a dispatcher can give a train crew that doesn't conflict with this rule. The principal courtesy I was taught was to advise train crews of meets in order that they can lay off crossings, and to know if they'll be there for more than one train, and how long, so they can plan their moves. Otherwise there will extra radio calls from train crews wondering what's going on taking up your time, a lot of bad meets, and grade crossings blocked longer than they need to be. By the same token, I often asked the opposing train to advise a train in the siding when they were getting close, so the train in the siding could pull down to the switch at the right time. This is pretty valuable when your railroad has 10-mph siding switches, non-bonded sidings, and lots of grade crossings through sidings.

The preponderance of collisions in which dispatching played a direct or indirect role that I've read about and witnessed from afar are:

1. Authority excursions -- a train or maintainer exceeds its authority. These include a train proceeding past the limit of its DTC or TWC authority, or passing an absolute signal indicating stop. These are not as rare as one would think.

2. Getting on the wrong track -- a dispatcher authorizes a maintainer to set on a main track in multiple main track territory, but the maintainer sets on the wrong track.

3. Missed repeats -- a train repeats a TWC or DTC authority incorrectly, with unauthorized limits, and the dispatcher fails to catch it. If there's another authority in the same territory, a disaster is in the offing.

4. Joint track-and-time errors: a dispatcher fails to make all trains/maintainers in a track-and-time joint; one of these does not know about the other and fails to proceed at restricted speed.

5. Restricted speed errors: A train required to proceed at restricted speed does not.

6. After arrival of errors: A maintainer or train is authorized to occupy a main train "After arrival of a train," but for a variety of reasons sets on ahead of it.

7. Roll-up errors: a train releases the territory behind it in TWC or DTC territory, but actually gives away the track underneath it and some distance ahead of it, too. I've also seen dispatchers do this as a train left TWC/DTC territory and enter CTC -- self-releasing the TWC authority the moment something assumed to be the train hits the OS at the control point! -- a big rules violation.

8. Temporary speed restriction errors -- a dispatcher doesn't update all trains with a new speed restriction.

There have been some collisions in recent years in which technically no rule was violated by a dispatcher, but some poor dispatching practices were a factor. One I recall was on another railroad. A train was dead on hours-of-service on a main track, tied down between siding switches. The dispatcher gave an opposing train TWC authority up to the siding, through the siding, and continuing on the main track on the other side as well. A few hours later, the opposing train crew arrived. By that time apparently they forgot there was a take-siding instruction in the middle of their main-track authority because they were focused on the end point of the authority. The train arrived at the siding at too great a speed to take the switch. The train crew in this case had failed to comply with the warrant, clearly. But it would have been much better to not have issued the warrant in this way, but to issue another authority from the siding to the main track, after the train arrived in the siding. I can't recall if the opposing train was ever advised there was a dead train on the main track in front of it, either. This was talked about by the old heads in my office as an object lesson for us young dispatchers: "Don't set up train crews!"