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Re: [BRHSlist] Modern operations, Response #1

To: <BRHSlist@yahoogroups.com>
Subject: Re: [BRHSlist] Modern operations, Response #1
From: "VLBG" <VLBG@s...>
Date: Mon, 25 Mar 2002 05:10:48 -0600
References: <001d01c1d398$d968d360$0100a8c0@a...> <030101c1d39b$dbed2cf0$0201a8c0@m...> <005c01c1d3d3$b55e4960$0100a8c0@a...>
Bob,

Answers have been inserted.

Russ
----- Original Message -----
From: "Bob Weber" <eng95@a...>
To: <BRHSlist@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Monday, 25 March, 2002 02:04
Subject: Re: [BRHSlist] Modern operations
>
> So the brakeman in now a brakeperson? Is that because there are only 2 people 
> in a train
crew and one or both could be a woman? J

Was trying to be polite. Have been very plainly told that this list does not 
want
unfiltered conversation.
>
> What is a grain unit in the context ".usually includes unit grain pickups and 
> setouts
since few elevators have room for entire grain units on one track."?

"Grain Unit" means a group of cars billed on one waybill to one destination. 
The BN
started in the late 80's
with the following increments: 9 - 27 - 54. They sold "Certificates of 
Transportation"
which guaranteed a
supply of empties and a rate at some future date. After the RR sold these they 
could be
exchanged or
bought and sold by the Customers as their needs changed. The increments have 
changed now
to:
26 - 52 - 104. This is with old style 263,000 GWR equipment. There are still 
contracts
floating around,
especially in Nebraska, that use the old increments. Agricultural Transportation
Marketing has to be
flexible.

BN developed the "Shuttle Train" concept around 1994. Started getting bigger, 
(and more
expensive), cars
and had to maximize their usage. With a few exceptions Shuttle Trains are 110 
286,000 GWR
cars from
a single origin to a single destination. Loading and unloading times are very 
short, (12
hours) so the
equipment is always moving.

There are also unit train movements of corn syrup and sweet bran, (corn 
squeezings). The
sweet bran
is perishable and moves in old flat bottom coal gons that have had permanent 
roll up tarps
added to
the tops of the cars sides. Yes, there is a dumper for these trains, currently 
just in
Dalhart TX but there
will be more. The unit corn syrup trains generally go to Mexico.

I'll set up a scenario that I am familiar with:

At Wolf Point MT there are three active elevators. One is off the main with a 
West facing
switch.
Two are off the East end of the siding and are switched from the East. All 
three usually
load 52
car units. You are called for a turn out of Glasgow with 104 empties. These 
will not be
shuttle cars.
You pull down the main at Wolf Point. There is a crossing right in the middle 
of the
siding but
104 cars will fit either East or West of it. In this case you will leave the 
cars East of
the crossing
so you can work the elevator off the main later. You cut off and go into the 
East end of
the siding
and start making the joints on the 52 loads which will be in three pieces. (Both
elevators on that side
share the same trackage). Meanwhile the Dispatcher runs trains through the 
siding. After
you
have everything assembled you will pull East, needing the siding and main and 
set the
loads over to
track #2 which is not used for loading, This task done you go back to the main 
and get
the 52
empties, which will be on the head end, and shove back in and arrange them on 
tracks 3, 4,
& 5 so
either of the elevators can load them. (Yes, there are little books for each 
territory
that tell you how
cars are supposed to be spotted. Of course, if you are on the Glasgow Extra 
Board you
don't need
any book.) After you have spotted either of the North side elevators you run 
down to the
West end
of the siding and the Dispatcher lines you down the main. He still has the 
siding to run
trains. You
pull the South side elevator, there will be joints to make, and hold on to the 
52 loads.
Shove down the
main and get the remaining 52 empties and spot them, holding on to the loads. 
(It is a
big no-no to
pull loads while holding on to empties. If there is a curve they sometimes just 
roll over
on their sides.)
Almost done. Shove the 52 loads in the siding from the West end and make the 
joint with
the West
end of track #2. (The guy that was protecting the shoves into the South side 
elevator is
in a good
spot to walk over and make this joint.) Pull all 104 West of the crossing on 
the siding
and do your
terminal air test. Dispatcher now has the main back. Air test done, it's time 
to go to
Glasgow.

Problem is you got 52 for Kalama WA and 52 for Seattle WA. That's alright. When 
you get
to
Glasgow you put the 52 for Seattle on track #2 at that location, (crossing to 
be cut), and
turn the
52 for Kalama over to a Havre crew. At Havre the train will be set up for 
Distributive
Power and
go on it's way, pick up 52 more Kalama's at, say, Rudyard MT. Meanwhile back at 
Glasgow
some
train will set out a couple "Pumpkins" and a crew will be called there to pull 
the Glasgow
elevator
and make up a 104 car train for Seattle. (Brakeperson from Havre will be 
pre-positioned
there by
plan and just called for that train.) Now you have two 104 car grain trains 
heading West
and no yard
crew has ever touched a car in either train. The blocking and the destinations 
might be
more
complicated than this but the Grain Department does a good job and keeps the 
trains full.
There is a
plan and it is not kept a secret. Since the Dispatcher runs Glasgow most of 
this can be
done with
no Management attention. Just follow the plan and call the crews to fit in with 
the
traffic pattern.
For instance you could not make the Wolf Point move during the Amtrak time 
frame because
you
can not run them through the siding without an awful good reason. If this was 
forced to
happen
the empty would just have to wait in the siding until both Amtrak's were gone 
and then
start his work.

I'll get back to this.

Russ



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