futher question to this is when did four man crews disappear
BILL EWINGER
----- Original Message -----
From: <qutlx1@a...>
To: <BRHSlist@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Saturday, February 17, 2001 4:30 PM
Subject: [BRHSlist] On Spot
> I'd like to get a discussion going on the cause/origin of 1 and/or 2 man
> train crews. Stated another way the demise of the 3 man train crew. I
propose
> that it originated w/the diesel locomotive. I base this a long ago
discussion
> w/Huey Talbot(SP?) who was number one of on the locomotive engineers
> seniority list when I started.Huey was also a griever for the Union at one
> time if memory serves correctly (yours truly also spent some time wearing
> that title). We were sitting in the cab of 9140 (I think) an SW-1 waiting
to
> go out of Eola on the Irish Mail when the subject of why only 2 of the 3
> switchmen were ever actually on the leads. The other was in the shanty "on
> spot" (they took turns, and yes I've been one of them). Huey shared that
the
> practice started when the diesel switchers came into service as the
engineer
> and fireman took turns running the engine during a shift. It soon followed
> that the foot soldiers rotated 2 hr spot times at Eola. I don't recall any
> other yard where this practice was so prevalent. At HY(Cicero) the foreman
> might be around the yard office while the helpers were grabbing a track
but
> he wasn't "on spot." On spot meant on break and not required to perform
any
> productive efforts. At SV(Savanna,Mendota,etc I always remember the entire
> crew on the ground.
> Leo
> P.S. yes I also agree that radios,freds,hot box detectors, and shifted
load
> detectors helped too.
>
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