Years ago I seem to remember seeing a lot of empty boxcars with open doors. I don’t see that much anymore. Is this a security issue, and are boxcar doors generally closed and/or sealed when moving empties these days?
Thanks
Ed
Most of the box cars built in the last 15 years or so have plug doors, much heavier than the older sliding doors, suspended from the top track by rollers. These move more easily, and are therefore more prone to cause damage to themselves or the rest of the car (I’d mention that they would make a bigger “splat” beneath them if they fell off and hit someone, but a sliding door could do enough damage). Rules actually require plug doors to be closed and locked before a car is moved (and the cars will be stencilled with something to that effect).
You may see more car doors being closed (even the sliding ones) when railroads discover (again) that an open box car creates more of an aerodynamic drag, hence consumes more fuel.
With the cost of diesel our railroad perfers to have the doors closed because it cuts down on drag.
Rodney
We routinely refuse to pull boxs with the doors open, it is the customers responsibility to close them before releasing the car…as Carl pointed out, because of the design, the plugs doors can come off if the car is kicked too hard or gets over a hump and makes a hard couple.
Those doors can weight up to a ton a piece, you really don’t want to be near one when it comes off.
At the yard I work at I see them all the time they are always the ones with slider doors I also quite often see them loaded full of bricks with the door open
Isn’t there another factor, that being to keep riders out of them?
We regularly see cars coming in from the south with open doors. I don’t know if they are locals from the area around the yard or if they actually came in from farther away, but it has always been my thought that they look like an easy ride.
On the CSX and NS around Atlanta we routinely see empty box cars go by with the doors open. The kids always point this out because they are sure there are people inside hitching a ride.
I guess you are able to ride a box car.[:-^]
Crossing the Columbia River, where Milwaukee Road had a wind indicator to stop trains if the wind down the gorge got too high, the doors on empty boxcars were preferably open, to keep the wind from gusting a light, empty car over the side of the bridge.
Boy did you see the flash as the light went on in my brain? I would have never considered that - but good information to tuck away.
I remember talking with a GBW car man a long time ago on a photo trip to Green Bay, and I asked him about open box car doors. He said they were real careful about switching box cars with the door closed all the time, because there’d been cases of car men being killed or severely injured by doors falling off in the yard. Not sure if he meant the GBW yard there or elsewhere.
Under the right conditions, couldn’t a boxcar with open doors have snowdrifts in it?
So the wind will blow right on through. Sounds like the lead-in for a joke or three…
Or a country song. [C):-)]<<Yee Haw! I finally found an appropriate use for that icon.
CSX rules clearly states that “plug-doors” must be closed…whats funny is ive seen more “storm-door” type doors…the other doors that hang on rollers in a track at the top… on the ground then plug doors
That’s probably because the sliding doors are over 99% of those left open.
How often do sliding doors that were closed when the car was loaded/unloaded pop open when the car is coupled to? I know I’ve seen it happen.
lol…everytime id kick cars at ensel yd…doors would go sliding…but the doors i mentioned were seen out on the line…slack action from newbie engineers???[:O]