When I was working, I would get the young new guys to do rail road switching puzzles to see if they knew there stuff before I sent them out…Does anyone know if there is such a game online that I could kill some time with and challenge my brain? eg: A single line track out in the dessert, 100 car train westbound ,100 car east bound same track, come to a siding that only holds 50 cars and an engine, pass the 2 trains so they continue on their way… Any help would be great.
Schedule the Investigation of the Dispatcher that lined up such a meet and hold him out of service pending the investigation.
Not an on-line game, but here’s a site with switching (shunting) puzzle layout plans and procedures.
This is a site where you can play several switching puzzles.
http://dawson-station.blogspot.com/2010/05/shunting-puzzles-on-line.html
Personally, I need LOTS MORE instruction to play the game, but maybe you will fare better.
This type of exercise doesn’t even have to be done online. Just hand someone a track list or industry switch list and let the fun begin. Hopefully the industry list will have respots. Main objective is to do the work in the least amount of moves in least amount of time
LOL!! That’s right.
I’ve never liked sitting around doing these puzzles. Real world experience beats a computer game any day. Give me a list and let me just have at it and I can wing it much better.
Don’t forget to set and release the hand brakes!
Someone say switching puzzles?
This one comes from a very sharp RRer, and I’ll share it here:
In this puzzle, we have a passing siding with an interlocking in the middle. This interlocking allows access to a stub-ended yard. As you can see, the siding (and main) hold 6000’ between CP-Carl and CP-Tree. The siding and main can hold 4000’ between CP-Tree and CP-Balt. All switches and signals are dispatcher controlled.
This day, we ended up having to meet 3 trains at this siding. Train A’s length was reported to be 5900’. Train B was reported to have a length of 3600’. Train C was reported as 5500’. You, as the dispatcher, held Train A at CP-Tree on the siding. Train B then arrived, and you put him on the siding to hold at CP-Tree, in order to clear the main for Train C, which was the last to arrive, and also had the greatest priority of the 3.
As train B pulled into the siding, we find that his length as reported is wrong (lousy computer). He is actually 5000 feet. He will not fit in the siding, no matter how close he gets to the signal at CP-Tree. Uh-oh. Now nobody can pass anyone.
How do we get out of this mess with the least delay? Today’s rule of the day is protecting all shove moves. So If we reverse someone, the conductor must walk back to protect the rear end, then walk back to the head end. Nobody else is around to help. We have to do it all with the 2 man crews on each train. And the engineer is pretty much stuck in the cab.&
[quote user=“zugmann”]
This day, we ended up having to meet 3 trains at this siding. Train A’s length was reported to be 5900’. Train B was reported to have a length of 3600’. Train C was reported as 5500’. You, as the dispatcher, held Train A at CP-Tree on the siding. Train B then arrived, and you put him on the siding to hold at CP-Tree, in order to clear the main for Train C, which was the last to arrive, and also had the greatest priority of the 3.
As train B pulled into the siding, we find that his length as reported is wrong (lousy computer). He is actually 5000 feet. He will not fit in the siding, no matter how close he gets to the signal at CP-Tree. Uh-oh. Now nobody can pass anyone.
How do we get out of this mess with the least delay? Today’s rule of the day is protecting all shove moves. So If we reverse someone, the conductor must walk back to protect the rear end, then walk back to the head end. Nobody else is around to help. We have to do it all with the 2 man crews on each train. And the engineer is pretty much stuck in the cab.
The next passing siding is miles away. The yard down below is a stub, with no tracks available for any fancy run-around moves. And the yardmaster is not going to be happy if you block up his yard throat any longer than necessary. He has trains to run as well, and your mess is keeping his locals from getting out to the main. You have several bosses breathing down your neck asking how you are going to get out of this mess as quickly as possible. What do you do?
It’s 3am, so don’t criticize the lousy diagram too much. Any questions, ask away. I’m sure someone w
Remember - all the switches are controlled by the dispatcher.
That’s one way, but your yardmaster is going to be complaining about that train blocking his yard lead (that is a hint, BTW). But kudos for having the crews work together.
No “correct” answer here, so anyone else want to give it a stab?
YM can complain all he wants - if this mess doesn’t get resolved, he isn’t going to be doing anything worthwhile anyway. He has to take one for the ‘team’.
The other problem is that you are still delaying 2 trains by having them help each other. There’s a way to avoid that.
Hmmm, I suppose you could possibly put the conductor of train A on the ground, pull train A 4000 feet forward on the main between CP 3 and CP Balt, send the conductor on train A on a 1900 foot walk to the end of train A, back train A out on the main to the left of CP Carl, pull train B fully into the siding, have train C depart, then pull train A into the main between CP Carl and CP 3. Train B departs. Conductor train A will have a long (5900’) walk forward again, but trains can depart from the yard while he does that.
Stein
I picked a hell of a night to be drinking and try to figure that one out…
Adrianspeeder
Personally, I would just lift one of the trains off the track and put the cars back in their boxes, but I suppose you are not talking HO scale here, are you?
Dispatch sets routing for Train B to yard.
Conductor B drops off engine at CP Tree.
Train B pulls through route to yard until rear of train clears CP Balt. (Approximately 1000 feet)
Conductor B cuts train in the clear on the siding at CP tree, sets hand brakes on cut left on the siding, climbs on the last car of the head cut.
Headend of Train B pulls onto yard lead to a point clear of the main.
Trains A and C now have track available to proceed beyond the siding and depart.
Train B now gets a route to back onto the main with conductor B protecting the shove.
Once in the clear on the main and to the right of the switch at CP tree, Train B pulls forward to crossover to the siding.
Once clear of the siding switch at CP Tree, the train backs down to make the joint with the rear of the train.
Upon completing the joint and releasing handbrakes the conductor walks back up to the engine.
(This assumes that there is no need for a brake test observed at the rear of Train B).
That’s the solution I had in mind.
What’s the rule on when you need to do a new brake test?
Smile,
Stein
- B pulls train to clear Balt but is headed into the yard at Tree, , cuts train so that only what fills Balt to Tree reamins on sidng and takes head end and enters yard. C moves east thru Balt… B returns to Tree, retrieves his hind end and goes to Carl crossing
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won’t work unless it is a really large interlocking. When the head end of B backs out of the yard to retrieve the rest of his train, his head end will still most likely be in the yard. He has to do the zig-zag move out on the main (alongside his cars), then across Tree to get on the siding. If the interlocking is really big, then you may be able to do it, but you will probably need dual-controlled switches so you can take them out of power mode.
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is the obvious choice, but it means the conductor will have to protect the shove of train B, then walk 5000’ to the head end. Personally, I’d rather make a cut and only walk 1000’.