I watched Bad Day at Black Rock last night (1955), and noted that as the train came into Black Rock to drop Spencer Tracy that it did not have it’s headlight on. I model the S.P. in the late fifties so it started me thinking.
I seem to remember that Greyhound Buses started running with their headlights on during the daytime in the fifties and pretty much started the trend for other vehicles. In the sixties I even remember the little ‘running lights’ that became a fad to mount on the front grill of your car and wire them to come on anytime the engine was running. When did the railroads start running with their headlights on all the time? TIA
Running with headlights on sounds a lot safer than running with sissors!
I Use to race go-cart type minis when I was young. these cars did not, of course have headlights. BUT, having flipped my car and being a memeber of some crashem-smashems, I never thought twice about using my seatbelt in the over-the-road car. I knew first hand its safety atributes. When they finally made it a NY State law, I and my family were firmly planted in its use. I knew those lap-only things (70’s) weren’t enough, but a 6-point harness was not then, not is it yet now required, and should be!
Early on, I caught on to the drive with headlights on “craze”. I could see on a bright sunny day that any car on the other side of the interstate with its lights on caught my attention quicker than any other vehicle of any size. They should have it a requirement on cars…auto-lights-on. I believe CAnada has it as law.
AS for railroads…I couldn’t tell you. I believe any trains I’ve seen approaching a xing have them on. They should have lights on for safety!
yard Switchers have both the front and rear headlight set to dim. If it is a Local train that will return to the same yard that it orginated at, they turn only the direction they’re going on. Unless on CSX and then I turn the headlight in the direction they’re traveling on Bright, and the direction opposite they are going is on Dim.
Every train I can remember had their headlight switched on before moving, Period. Dead engines in a yard would get a crew boarding first, then switch on the headlight prior to moving.
One of the things I liked about Proto 2000 engines is the headlightd came on with the first 2 volts… Before it started to move (Diode lighting). Competivly marketed and expensive Atlas engines used a 14V (?) bulbs that didn’t light until at least 10 volts was reached and the engine was running near top speed. Other than that they were beautiful engines - one could hunt for the switch to run DC or DCC.
Trains must run with head lights on bright and ditch lights illuminated at all times. However their are a few exceptions, a train may dim the lights when working in the yard, aproaching a yard that has a working crew, when stopped in a siding, or when meeting or passing a train at night except when approaching a grade crossing. A locomotive may have the head lights off when tied down on a mainline, or when stopped and the approaching train ask’s for the head light to be exstinguished. This is somewhat condensed from the rules but gives an overview of where one would see headlights on or off. Commuter trains would be under different rules.
Browsing through some old magazines recently, there was an editorial on this subject - the lack of a headlight on a steam loco in daytime was very common, as the law did not require it, and the engineer preferred to use all his available steam for power, rather than even allow a small amount to the steam-driven dynamo to be “wasted”.
I recollect that some engineers even took this habit to their diesels(!), but, as has already been said, the law changed and made things far more strict.
Mr Tracy’s SP train was just doing what was normal in the late 1940s-early 1950s. Things are different nowadays.
Its been a while since I’ve seen it so I don’t remember the scene exactly (not sure if it was “stock” footage or made for the movie itself), but, in addition to what others have said, it is also possible that the headlight was out due to the film maker’s request. Headlights on trains and cars etc are very bright (that’s the point!) and tend to give cameramen exposure problems. i.e. if he adjusts his camera for the headlight, the rest of the scene will appear too dark. Often in old movies cars that have their headlights on have their lights “frosted” so that the light is much less intense or they are replaced with lower wattage bulbs.
It may have been that the locomotive’s headlight was just too bright for the scene so the director asked the engineer to turn it off.
During the steam era, and well into the 1950s, headlights weren’t on at all times. Most roads had rules in place that mandated that they be on only during night, and for one hour before and after. I’ve seen hundreds of photos and movie clips of trains from the 1900-1950 period that show moving trains with no lights on.