What is a manifest frieght? How are priorities made for the passage of frieght trains.
Many thanks in advance for the information
Alex
a manivfest is generally a mixed freight. the dispaatchers have a list of all trains in their territory and will have a lower priority train take a siding to let the higher priority train pass
hope this helps
tom
Manifest freight is given its classification because it is:
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Valuable. When the silk trains ran, about a century ago, they owned the railroad. A dispatcher who delayed one by failing to clear the line for its passage would be seeking other employment as soon as the GM found out.
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Perishable. Produce, fruit and refrigerated meat can spoil in transit, so the trains that carried them were given priority over non-perishable cargo. Delay a carload of pianos and you might irritate some people. Delay a carload of frozen shrimp and you’ll irritate the local health authorities and an insurance company.
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High tariff. Railroads got higher freight rates for moving manufactured products than for hauling gravel. More money, better service.
Today, intermodal trains are the manifest freights. Amtrak passenger trains are put into sidings so intermodal trains can meet them without losing speed.
To expand a little on the already excellent information, container trains are generally “time sensitive”. This is especially true of trains containing United Parcel Service trailers. Much to the consternation of Amtrak and it’s passengers, the Amtrak train often waits, “in the hole” for the container train to pass.
Manifest is now regular priority frieght. Generally, priority is a follows:
Passenger
UPS/US Mail Intermodal
Regular Intermodal (includes automobile traffic)
Manifest frieght
Drag frieght (coal, ore, etc)
Yard/Local trains.
However, the hottest train on the railroad is usually the one that’s about to expire under Hours of Service.
Nick