Muddy - does, however, a municipality have to authority to regulate train speed over a public grade crossing? Or will most railroads comply with a (reasonable) restriction just for sake of keeping the peace?
As a one-time line-haul supervisor for a LTL trucking company, we often would honor reasonable requests to use an alternate routing to and from our terminals just to stay on the good side of local officials (i.e.; the “Don’t poke the bear” theory of management). A lot of them involved avoiding school zones on weekdays, or circling a town on the “wide road” bypass to avoid downtowns.
A University city had issues with trains “speeding” through the campus vicinity and placing the (trespassing) students in danger as they crossed the tracks . They had indicated that they wanted a speed restriction through their city of 25 MPH. The RR had always tried to work with that city, and the University. But the locals did neither remember or appreciate those passed actions and became very strident in their communications, especially the verbal ones in private meetings. They were informed of unintended consequences but finally agreed to a trial period that was volunteered by the RR of 25 MPH between 3:00 and 6:00 PM.
The RR had told them that this was the time when its traffic was busiest but they did not wish to listen. The result was long freight trains, on their usual schedule, began blocking the city’s major streets and causing two or three block long backups of vehicles stopped by closed gates. This trial period lasted about two weeks and the city relented because of these consequences. The city and the University began educating the students about trespassing and created two overhead pedestrian crossings that were approved by the RR
Unfortunately that’s either the one you bypass, or it’s the one where you’re on the approach and in heavy dynamic dragging your speed down.
The Leader speed is usually accurate if you are picking up enough satellites. But always go with the slowest speed. Esp. if it’s the LSL display - that’s pretty important to obey.
Our ETT doesn’t desginate any “measured” mile. The one (and only one) we have on all the territories I can work is designated by signage. It isn’t on the territory I currently work.
I am fortunate to have some that are fairly close to an actual mile. However, like Zug said, it isn’t always possible to maintain an exact speed through them.
Zug, there’s a screen on the LEADER menu (at least on ours) where it gives fuel usage per mile up to your current location. Among that data is footage between the mile posts. I’ve used it for future reference to find which miles are closest for timing purposes.
Most of the engines I run now don’t have LEADER (thank god). Next time I get stuck with road power for a local (what fun), I’ll have to dig around. I don’t know if ours has that option. I don’t recall it but maybe I missed it. I guess you could start the foot counter on the leader and keep a steady speed as well. Meh. I usually just keep it a few clicks below.
It’s in a sub-menu of one of the menu options. I’m not sure which one off hand. Isn’t it wonderful to have so much information available that you’ll never use.
Had to run a road train a few days ago and the LEADER was completely convinced I was on the set of tracks across the river. No matter how many times I told it I was on the “A” Line, it kept going back to me being on the “B” Line. And it also said I had an 88# brake reduction the whole time.
Get a couple of pieces of bathroom mirror, or shatterproof mirror material, and mount them at a 90-degree angle to each other in a box. Put the box on an adjustable stand so you can align it to make the reflection of the speedometer easily visible from your long-hood-forward running position.
The right angle ‘reverses the mirror reflection’ so what you see will read correctly, and if you like you can include Fresnel magnification, shade hoods, and other things to make the display more visible. You can make it larger (or include separately-adjustable smaller ‘heads’) if you want to read other gauges as well.
If the reflection ‘washes out’ due to high ambient lighting, you could install a reflector spotlight or similar lighting so it bears on the gauge when needed – this might be too bright to view comfortably directly, but would be ‘just right’ to be seen through sunglasses or glare-adapted irises…
It’s been considered… Just hasn’t happened yet. I’d settle for a single mirror. I’m not likely to get too confused if it looks like I’m doing 52 instead of 25 - unless I’m really doing 52…