Along the CP mainline near my house there’s a signal with three lamps aligned vertically. The top light changes from red to yellow and green but the bottom two lamps are always red. What is the purpose of those two lamps if they’re always red?
Can you get close enough to the track to see whether there’s a switch beyond the signal? I’m betting that it’s a home signal for a control point, and that if the switch were thrown by the dispatcher or other control operator, one of the lower lights would be another color than red.
Nearly every time I’ve seen three lights to a signal, it’s been a home signal. The signal nearest my own home is one exception–it’s an approach signal on which the Approach Diverging indication can be for either a higher-speed route (middle light) or a restricted-speed route (lower light).
That’s not true! Keep in mind on the rules of signals. It depends 
Just what is the rule of signals?
Ulrich, Canadian signal indications are subtly different than US indications, but not directly contradictory. In the US there are two methods of signalling “Route signalling” and “Speed signalling” . May I suggest that you join the CPR list on yahoogroups, there are several CPR (Canada) Engineers and Dispatchers on that list who can explain signal indications. I know that CPR recently converted the Delaware & Hudson RR back from NORAC rules to GCOR to simplify Dispatching, since the Swing Dispatchers cover both D&H and Soo Line territory and it was difficult to keep qualified Dispathers in both GCOR and NORAC rules.
I am looking at a page of Canadian Pacific signal rules, and will stand by my original statement.
It’s very easy to come on and say “That’s not true!”, but unless you can come up with examples to back up a bold remark like that, it’s worthless and meaningless. And pointless. And gutless.
Mr. Ulrich, did you get a chance to check it out?
What rules are you referring to CN Or CP?
Are you certain they display nothing other than red, ever? If you’ve never seen the lower heads displaying anything other than hard red, that’s most likely because you’ve never been there when there was a condition that would generate aspects other than something over red over red.
CPR uses 3-headed signals for the absolute signal (aka “A” or “home” signal) at the entrance to a control point where there are diverging routes, and for the approach to a control point. If you look at the aspect list below it shows other possible aspects and their indications:
http://www.railroadsignals.us/rulebooks/canpac/cp1.htm
It is absolutely impossible to tell you from afar what aspects that are possible on that signal without seeing the Signal Department’s Aspect Chart for that control point. If I had the Signal Department line map, I could infer them, or, if I had a track chart and employee timetable for the location plus 10 miles either side, I could generate the line map and then the Aspect Chart (given 20-30 hours of time). But I have none of these documents for this location.
There are numerous possibilities.
RWM
I’m going to check it out this evening CShave RR…thanks… thanks everyone for the replies…I wasn’t aware that alot of the signal aspects are specifc to the railroads that use them. I would have thought that all signals are the same for all carriers much like traffic lights mean the same pretty much everywhere (well I know there are some minor exceptions).
Railway Man, the only problem with that page is that it covers the Soo Line, not Canadian Pacific in Canada. CROR is a bit different as I said, in fact they are Speed Signalling. Here is a page with the CPR (Canada) signal indications
CPR (Canada) Signal Indications
John Beaulieu
Aha!
[bow]
CTC signals in Canada are for the most part universal. The signals are in the CROR and apply to all railways that use CTC. There are exceptions of course, ie. the CN New Westminer Sub in Vancouver which is ex-BNSF and the same indications as BNSF in the USA(Approach, Diverging Clear, etc.).
Thanks for the info.
and here I thought this was going to be about the Reading railroad!
Im still waiting on a answer from you , You made a bold statement that we needed to remember signal reading rules that we had no idea what we was talking about. so what is the rule