I rmember when the railroads got rid of the caboose en masse in 1989/1990. I recall watching a TV documentary about this, and railroaders were saying that cabooseless trains would bring about a deterioration in safety. Has this happened or is everybody now okay with FRED?
When you’re doing a long reverse move, a caboose would be greatly missed. That’s what keeps them around, thank goodness.
matt and I like watching the local so we can see a caboose.
stay safe
Joe
I recall some of the older railroaders talking about various injuries received due to slack action while they were in a caboose. The old hulls of cabooses used for long shove moves are handy to have, especially in foul weather. Old FRED is ok as long as he has a decent battery but he can be a pain in the ass when you’re trying to link him up.
Based on what I’ve read here on the Forum and elsewhere, the main people that miss the caboose are railfans and the general public. Backup moves and the like notwithstanding, it’s my impression that railroaders, and railroads, were glad to see them go.
The biggest reason was slack action and the injuries it caused. That’s no fun for the crews, and an expense for the railroad.
Of course, the demise of the caboose in regular service also meant the end of two of four jobs on your average freight, and the associated pain that brings. Only having two crew members is no big deal for a run with no incidents, but it’s half the workforce if you have to walk the train, etc.
As late as the mid-90’s, the Chicago Central & Pacific was still using a former ICG caboose on the Manchester/Cedar Rapids turn (an extended-vision design, in the orange & white livery w/plenty of rust). I remember seeing that job in the former IC yard in Cedar Rapids every morning on my way into work. I’m pretty sure the CCP wasn’t doing a lot of reverse moves on the way. I was always curious why they continued using the caboose.
I know I was glad to see them go–much easier to run a train when you don’t have to worry about killing your conductor with slack action.
Maybe for the backup move to service Marion Iron, et. al.?
We now are in aentire generation of rail workers who have never pulled a train w/a manned caboose and crews who have never had to use on. If such cars were still in service, you would have injuries and claims filed against the rr like crazy. About the only thing they are good for nowdays is work train service ,but to a certain point. I had one a few yrs ago on a rail train. I rode back there by myself as the brkmn watching shoves and keeping an eye out for traffic on the othr main trk. We had to drag the thing (forward) something like 45 miles one day and I said no way, i’m riding 35 mph for that distance. When ready to leave, I had a mow dude drive me up to the head end and rode there. Its much better to be riding on a air cond eng instead of sweating like a pig in a lousy, bumpy car on the rear end.
Cabeese are a double edged sword for the rail industry.
With slack action they were dangerous for the rear end crew to ride, especially with engineers that haven’t fully comprehended the power of slack action. Since the Class I’s have lengthend their trains since the days of the caboose the slack action is now even worse than ever.
The other edge of the sword is that now, when a train goes into emergency it is only inspected from the head end to the rear, rather than from both ends at the same time as occured when there were occupied cabooses. In the world of the 9000 foot train you have a man walking 3.5 miles on main track ballast to inspect the entire train…to walk 3.5 miles at a brisk pace on a hard surfaced street - without performing any car/defect inspection - is a 50/60 minute task, and trainmen that are inspecting a train for a defect are at best walking at half that speed…so the 9000 foot train that has a U.D.E. (undesired emergency brak application) is at a minimum a 2 hour derailment, and in many cases even more time is required to inspect and correct the problem.
You pays your monies, you takes your choices.
Instead of cabooses like on some local freights, once there was a local GTW train with the two GP38-2s on each end of the train. One facing forward, one facing backwards. Distributed Power is a better place for crews to ride than a caboose with no power or control of the train.
Andrew
This just in.
http://www.utu.org/worksite/detail_news.cfm?ArticleID=41047
A Marion, Ill., man filed a Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) complaint against Illinois Central Railroad in United States District Court March 13, alleging he sustained permanent injuries to his left arm when he was exposed to a violent jerk while riding on a caboose on March 20, 2005, the Madison County Record reports.
I never saw that move over the old MILW main being done with the caboose. They usually went into Marion with the locomotive leading (and I have some photos at home - no they’re not digital images). They had enough head-room on what was left of the MILW yard tracks to do their moves and return with the engine leading. The cut of cars they brought into/out of Marion was never more than 4 or 5, and usually only 1 or 2. Once when I was out there to snap a few shots, I told the conductor there were some switch-locks left on some of the switchstands tossed-off to the side of the ROW. He asked, “Do ya want one?”. I said, “Sure!”, and he whipped-out his key and I got a free Chicago Central souvenier. That segment in Marion is now pulled-up - they still switch the cement plant off Blairs Ferry Rd. but the rest of the MILW in Marion is gone.
Was the perp arrested? 
[swg]
Yep, I watched 'em pick up the pieces…
At one time not too far back, seems like various state legislatures were still requring cabs, seems like virginia was one.Back in the real railroading days, they were a home away from home for crews., even had their own cuisine?Does anyone remember when Radios came into being, crews got radio pay., about $1 day., brc, brt, didnt want them.couldnt do without them today.[8D]
Sad, sad, sad… I got out there on a Kernels game/Irish Democrat road-trip not long after this occurred and there were still a few CN property signs on the old ROW east of Marion Depot. I’d have made-off with one but I didn’t have the tools handy to get the sign off the post (try to tell me those signs were serving a purpose after the rail, the ties, the spikes and the tie plates had been removed). Hope you got one…
Don’t forget Indiana - they for a long while held-onto the “full crew” law in that state which required a crew of 5 on all freights in the state. That was a major painus-in-the-anus to the Penn Central, NKP/NW and the Erie Lackawanna I know (as if the PC needed more problems).
Indiana’s full-crew law also required an additional brakeman for trains of 70 cars or longer. Monon had some rider cars on the roster to provide a place for the additional brakeman.
I know a current CSX conductor who had enough whiskers to hold a job when cabs were phased out. He said he likes riding up front to keep an eye on the engineer.LOLOL