Model-Railroad.TV

Know Your Red Zone

I saw this sign recently in a small railroad yard in Marshalltown, IA.

In working in a yard you have to be careful because there may be rolling railroad stock that you might not hear or be aware of if you weren’t watching. I was watching them sort cars, sending cars rolling onto various sidings in the yard. I watched them release one pair of cars that seemed to be rolling so slowly. However those two cars didn’t stop! They were like the EverReady bunny: They just kept going and going and going. They finally rolled out of my view onto the intended siding. Finally after about one or two more minutes I heard a BANG, and knew that they had arrived at their destination and connected with cars already on that siding. I considered how long those cars had been coasting with very little sound. A freightman in the yard could very easily be surprised if he wasn’t paying attention. That sign “Know Your Red Zone” refers to the need to be alert. I wrote in an earlier blog about the mainline tracks being a place in the yard where one needs to be especially aware of moving trains and rolling stock. It is important to see that this is also a matter of concern wherever one is in the yard.

Often in a yard a freightman may find himself between two strings of cars. What if one of those strings is moving? Have you ever been next to a long moving train and begun to feel disoriented due to the continuous steady motion of the cars? This is another problem in the yard. Then if one finds himself between two moving strings of cars, that becomes extremely disorienting. I have often thought if I ever find myself in such a position, I would probably lie down or at least get into some very stable lower position until the moving cars passed or stopped moving. The disorientation could actually cause one to become dizzy and fall under moving freight equipment. 

Now add to the above conditions that a freightman might be working at night in the yard. This is even more dangerous and calls for very careful diligence. 

So when you are running your model railroad, be cautious when you are working with rolling stock in your yard so that you don’t become dizzy operating your equipment. Have fun!

Dale

 

Ron Galloway’s Train Chasing

This fall Ron Galloway and Eric Carlson, Model-Railroad.TV’s cameraman, took a two day tour videoing great train watching sites along the upper Mississippi River. This promises to be a super video with trains at a lot of train watching points. 

Ron spent several years as a traveling salesman for model railroad equipment, and in that position had opportunity travelling by himself to search out various train watching spots. 

Let me tell you a story about Ron. When we did the shoot at Jackson Street Roundhouse, we had to travel almost two hours to get to our site in the Twin Cities. 

On the return trip Ron suggested a divergence from our route in order to connect with more tracks in hope of seeing trains. What fun!

Now I had taken that same road to the Twin Cities many times myself so I was quite interested. Isn’t it true that train buffs will vary their travel routes in order to see as many trains as possible? 

We didn’t see any trains this time, but I discovered a new road to watch trains from when I’m travelling by myself along that route. I’m wondering if this video will reveal yet more discoveries of great train watching sites. Stay tuned!

--Dale 

Order your copy of Ron's train chasing DVD, Traincation, at www.hobbyworld.tv.

 

Ron's Layout: Under Construction

Here are a few behind-the-scenes photos of Ron's layout in progress, which we filmed recently for Model-Railroad.TV. See his blog post from January 24, 2012, for an update.

Visit the "Building Structures" channel at www.model-railroad.tv for Ron's step-by-step demonstration on building and installing his scratch-built trestle.

 

Modern Railroading

How railroad operation has changed over the years! A fellow modeler and I were talking about this recently. The question had come up of how much business the trucks were taking away from the railroads. 

Yes, for a while the railroads were in decline because of competition not only from trucks but from airplanes. Part of the problem was the railroads needed to learn to compete and they needed to be freed from regulation that would not let them compete. 

But now the situation has changed so that rail traffic is on the increase and the railroads are hauling more goods than ever. As a matter of fact, many rail lines are becoming clogged from too much traffic and the railroads are having to expand trackage along these routes. 

Union Pacific has now double tracked its entire mainline across Iowa and triple tracked its main line from North Platte, NE, to Gibbon, NE, where its Omaha and Kansas City lines separate. BNSF is double tracking portions of its former Santa Fe mainline through the Southwest. 

One thing that has happened is the railroads are learning to work with the trucking industry rather than against it. Hauling truck trailers on train cars is a development that has taken place only in the last 50 years. It has now become a highly efficient process of loading trailers double stacked on specialized cars. 

There is also a method used especially by the eastern railroads, most notably Norfolk Southern, of using Roadrailers, special truck trailers with flanged guide wheels allowing the trailers to roll on the rails coupled together in strings that may be 100 trailers long. 

Another thing that has happened is the railroads are utilizing what they do best, leaving other transportation needs to the others. What they do best is 1) haul massive volumes of material and 2) haul long distances. 

A development in the last 40 years is the unit train, an entire train running from one origination point to one destination. Today about 75% of all rail traffic is unit trains. Coal is a primary unit train commodity. Ethanol is another common unit train commodity. Unit trains can haul any commodity a distributor, with enough volume, may request the rails to haul. 

Along these lines the railroads offer lower pricing if a shipper ships a multiple car shipment such as 25 cars. Grain elevators now commonly ship grain in these 25 car segments for great distances. Grain from the Midwest typically will go to the port of New Orleans for shipment abroad. 

It’s as much of a problem to switch a 25 car shipment as a one car shipment, and a unit train doesn’t have to be switched at all. Regulations now allow railroads to offer lower prices for larger shipments since costs are lower.

The days of the Railway Express Agency which ship lcl (“less than carload”) freight by rail are gone. That now goes by truck much more efficiently.  

--Dale