RailRoadFan.com

They could save it as some kind of historic site. I can't understand this railroad nostalgia. When Kroger replaces its human-operated cash registers with self-serve check out scanners, do we all weep and moan for the old, obsolete ways? Time marches on. Things get better. Human-staffed rail towers ...

One way to increase cpacity has already arrived. The Class I railroads have introduced the 386,000 lb hopper car and even want to bring in larger versions. These heavier cars are causing problems (in Michigan and elsewhere) for short lines because a lot of trackage will have to be improved to carry ...

Why are freight trains limited in length? The longest trains seldom exceed two miles. It would seem to be quite possible to construct a train of ten miles or more in length by putting more locomotives (i.e. distributed power) within the train at a spacing of every mile or so. Ultra-long trains shoul...

The standard, as far as I know, for train horns at all crossings is two long blasts, a short blast, and a then a final long blast. (I call them blasts because train horns are extremely LOUD.) The two long blasts occur far in advance of the crossing. The short blast occurs slightly before the crossin...

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AZ

Heer is just one more screen capture from the video. It has been brightened up a little to make out more detail. Unfortunately, the original video as posted was not of very good quality. Any enlargement beyond 200% is just so blocky that nothing can be discerned. But, unless I am imagining things, i...

Here are some screen catures from the video. The first appearance of the speeding vehicle as seen from the cab. The gates are down and the black car (seen at the extreme left) is definitely in the passing lane. http://home.comcast.net/~frank.peters/crash00.jpg As the train enters the intersection, s...

A lumber yard does not need to have a direct link to a rail line to benefit from the lower costs of rail transport. They can pick up their shipments at a rail distribution center. Canadian National operates a lumber distibution center at Nolan yard which is on the Mt. Clemens sub at Eight Mile Road....

Between Delray and Waterman trains are constantly being broken into ... I would'nt doubt that, but it seems that breaking into a freight car is a big gamble and not worth the risk unless one knows beforehand exactly what is inside. What does the average container carry? I don't think that every one...

For the best -- and I mean best -- overview of rail operations in Detroit and the surrounding area, check out the following web site: http://www.knorek.com/RR/SAA/SAAIndex.htm This site has not been updated since about 2002 (sadly, the author has left Michigan for greener pastures) but aside from so...

The Amtrak route between Detroit and Chicago seems particularly lethal. Does anyone have the total number of fatalities, both accident and suicide, that have occurred on this line over the past five years or so? It must be a high figure and would perhaps endow the Michigan line with the honor of bei...

We must be realistic. The passenger train, as we know it, is an antiquated form of transportation. America is a huge country. It is roughly 2000 x 1000 miles in breadth. These are enormous distances for anything other than air transportation to cover, especially when we also consider the desire of t...

So, AZ, what's YOUR solution? Solution? That's easy. We immediately impose a 10% tax on all fast food, energy drinks, tobacco products, and football and basketball tickets. That should bring in enough revenue to fund a national rail passenger network that won't force people in the smaller cities an...

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. No, the proposed budget cuts aren't stupid; I refer to the current practice of passenger rail transport in the US. Amtrak operations are a joke -- a sad and sick joke. Recently, I was considering taking a job that would have required me to travel to New York City about four t...

It appears that they already do.... OK. So Amtrak uses video cameras. Then what happens after a fatal accident? Do the local police take the video data? Or is the video data saved for later use by the TSB (or whatever Fed agency is responsible)? I woudn't think that any means of reviewing the data ...

BNSF has had video cameras installed in its lead locos for some time now. The sole purpose of those cameras is to record any crossing accidents. Because of the great number of human-train collisions on the Michigan line, it would be a good idea for Amtrak to use cameras. Eyewitnesses, even if they a...

That has to be one of the most arrogant, not to mention ignorant, statements I have ever read. Ever. I was almost expecting a response like this one. My only reply is that you obviously haven't gotten around much in life. The statements are rather mild compared to what they could have been. But in ...

I cannot believe all the silly sentiment that continues to be expressed over this bygone station. Why spend time, money, and effort to preserve this useless hulk? Just tear it down and move on to better things. People do things differently now. No one requires palatial splendor and opulence just to ...

Looking at these photographs of the cleanup, it doesn't appear that any kind of specialized equipment for dealing with railroad cars or track is being used. Most of the machinery is just common earth-moving stuff, although there are also a few mechanized "jacks" for lifting cars. Does this represent...

Unless I am mistaken, the Association of American Railroads is recommending the NXDN standard for all railroad companies. NXDN will allow mixed-mode operation, that is both FM and digital, and this is intended to make the changeover to digital a lot easier. NXDN is the new technology for narrow band...