excellent coverage, thanks for sharing!
Photos taken February 25, 2008
Summit
Silverwood
Cajon CP
Bridge RXR West of Cajon CP
Daggett update:
Daggett, looking west. From left to right, new Track 3, old Tracks 2 and 1, and UP Track 1.
Daggett, looking east. UP Track 1 absolute signal.
Daggett, looking at UP junction signal arrangement.
Daggett, looking at east BNSF junction signals.
West Daggett. Absolute signals: Far left poled eastbound Track 1 signal, plus westbound UP Track 1 and BNSF Track 1 (on signal bridge from left to right). Intermediate signals on signal bridge: Tracks 2 and 3, both directions
…Enjoyed the new update photos.
I see the tracks and the signals. Are there any trains?[swg]
That West Daggett photo a few posts above shows what some railroaders feel is a safety hazard. Because one double-unit eastbound signal is on a pole mast, and the other two two-unit eastbound signals are on the signal bridge a few hundred feet away, and the tracks to the left and outside the photo are on a sweeping curve, crews on eastbound nighttime trains see the mast signal lights appear to move across the tracks. Signals that move from one side of the tracks to the other side are subject to misinterpretation. The railroad may want to change that arrangement, and erect a new cantilevered signal bridge in place of the poled signal and put all eastbound signals visually in a row side by side. In that way, West Daggett signals would never appear to change positions, and thus would never be subject to misinterpretation.
isn’t part of the reason for having to qualify on routes as a crew member…to be able to recognize these type of idosyncracies? Not that you would remember every detail at the end of a long day or hectic week…
It has been said that even though the approach to San Diego Lindberg field is extremely dangerous because it passed through the downtown areas, often at building top level, that there are fewer incidences on approach because of its reputation, the pilots are extra attentive on this approach.
JSGreen:
You make very valid points above about qualified crews know their territory’s idiosyncrasies.
While I recognized the West Daggett situation nearly 15 years ago way before the third track was laid, it was a railroad engineer friend that has run trains all over California that recently reintroduced me to the West Daggett illusion problem.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report on the February 21, 2004 collision between two Union Pacific trains at Carrizozo, New Mexico is enlightening. In that collision, the engineer spent most of the day awake, and retired for the evening expecting to be called the next morning. Instead, he was called only a few hours later. Subsequently, he fell asleep at the throttle, and died there also at collision time. His conductor apparently was also asleep and likewise succumbed in terrible violence.
So, unlike the relatively rested and alert pilots flying into the very dangerous San Diego Lindberg field, train crews can be called at all hours, and may have to show up for duty while exhausted. In that impaired state, I feel that ‘the signal that walks across tracks’ at West Daggett could easily be misinterpreted, and if the conditions are right, a disastrous collision could occur.
The map in the April Trains shows the “third track alignment” being along the north side of the existing Main 1 the entire way, or in other words between the existing Main 1 and the former SP Palmdale line. This is actually not the case in some critical areas where conditions prevented BNSF from laying new track on the north side of Main 1. The BNSF track chart, and the many photos that have been posted here and on other forums, show that the new track is being laid on the SOUTH side of the existing Main 2 approaching the Cajon crossovers, then along the SOUTH side of the existing Main 1 through Sullivan’s Curve and the Mormon Rocks. It jumps back to the north side of the existing Main 1 in the vicinity of the I-15 overpass. One of the biggest challenges of this project will be when all the new track is laid in place and they hold up traffic for the better part of a day in order to shift the ends of those three tracks into alignment at the locations where the newly-laid main had to jump from one side of the existing main(s) to the other. As for geography, BNSF does not go through or over the San Bernardino Mountains. Cajon lies in a break between the San Gabriel and San Bernardino Mountains.
Shure would be nice to be there when the line reopens…talk about opening the floodgates.[:D][tup]
Bruce Kelly in his written observations in an above post was very astute. It was so deep it took me awhile to get the sense of it. However, when I mentally drew two straight lines from Los Angeles to Chicago, and called the top Track #1 (formerly North) and the bottom Track #2 (formerly South), his direction explanations came to life!
Thanks, K.P. I knew it was going to be a mouthful to digest. Looking at the map, I knew some folks would get totally lost by my description of north and south, especially in areas like Sullivan’s Curve where everything turns upside down. But you made the right move by remembering that BNSF’s “west” is toward L.A. and its “east” is toward Chicago. Now, we could really confuse people by bringing up that old business of how the SP viewed San Francisco as “west,” which meant that SP trains climbing Cajon were considered westbound while Santa Fe and UP trains climbing Cajon were eastbound. Without checking my Altamont Press California timetable, I couldn’t tell you how UP designates directions now on the former SP line.
North - South
Check out that retaining wall! Photo taken between CP Cajon and the new CP Walker on the way to Summit.
…If the camera was positioned due vertical / Horizonal in the above photo, it sure appears to show {at the new retaining wall}, and the track nearer to the camera, a rather steep grade of both tracks.
Anyone know just what the grade at that location is…?
RE: signal placement. Human factors have not been properly addressed. As a long time ALPA (Air line pilots association) member RR people would not believe how much safety is preached and persued. Our budget is much higher per member than the RR unions. The most important item ALPA promoted and help institut is the aviation safety reporting system ) administered by NASA so as to be independent of any agency or company. All aviation personel can report safety issues and more importantly our own goofs without the goofs being reported back to our employers. This reporting system has allowed many safety items to be corrected and the rate and number of human error accidents has gone down. Right now the one being most worked on is runway incursions. (same as trains running together or almost). A safety reporting system would bring attention to this signal placement. Also the other threads in forums about restrictiing signals. BTW – there are much more unsafe airports than SAN san diego that does not get publised. But safety reporting does make it aware to us pilots.
IIRC, Quentin, Chad told me when I visited Hill 582 very close to there that BNSF’s Track 1, along which the new track is being laid, has a ruling grade of 2.2%.
Brian is right Q, 2.2% is the ruleing grade on the old #1 (new #1 & #2)
The old #2 (to become #3 above CP Cajon) has a 3% ruleing.
…Thanks Brian and Chad. That is steep for a heavy train.
Heavy trains like the coil steel trains and the heavy manifests are kept off the 3% track. It can make for a real headache for the DS when one of these things needs to buck the flow of hot intermodials climbing the hill. This is where the new track will really come in handy. It also gives a little more flexabilty for UP trains from Yermo takeing the Silverwood connector as these need to cross over opposing eastbound traffic.