This morning, I got to pace a Dakota & Iowa rock train heading south out of town. Once it cleared the city limits,the engineer put the pedal to the metal, and was cruising at about 40 m.p.h.
Who determines how fast a train should be going? I’m sure there is an optimum speed for each train, to achieve a reasonable fuel cost.(?) Is the speed of travel dictated more by other factors?
Let’s say there is one track from Apple Tree to Cider Town.
A apple train uses that single track to haul apples to cider town. It takes two hours to travel that track at 20 mph. Because there is not much of any traffic it schedules at 20 mph and one engine and a bunch of cars sufficient for the day’s tonnage.
Let’s say that one day bigrailroad’s bridge washed out nearby and they have routed a passenger train onto cider branch tracks to get from A to B. This reroute occured overnight and now new orders are being cut for apple train…
That passenger train is due in one hour. The apple train will need to hold 50 mph to cider town to make that time.
Does it have the horses versus the gross tonnage/ruling grade/required track speed?
And why were you going that fast?[:-,]
90% of the hoggers I work with go the maximum track speeds and equipment restrictions allow.
Run em hot…
If the track speed is 40, the apple train will sit in the siding until the passenger train clears…
The speed of any train is governed by 3 things.
The Maximum allowable track speed for the sub-division
The Maximum allowable speed for the equipment being handled
The power allocated to the train by managment.
A train that is allowed 50 MPH by track speed, equipment speed and having the power to attain 50 MPH would be wasting the railroads resources by operating at less than 50 MPH by increasing the track segment occupancy time, thus making less time available for other traffic.
If a train can only maintain 25 MPH because that is all the speed that the power assigned with the tonnage being handled will allow…that is managments decision.
An engineer that is not maintaining track speed will probably be accused of “dogging it” and will be questioned about repeated violations. Running slower than allowable speed has been used to increase overtime pay.
Um…that was all the faster I could run?[:o)]
Really?[:-^]
One way to look at it is that the capacity of a railroad is dictated by it’s slowest train.
Are you suggesting, that I can’t waddle that fast?[}:)]
What happens when it’s a track that doesn’t see a lot of use, for example-6 to 7 trains in a 24 hour period?
FRA Track Classifications and signal spacing determine base maximum allowable speeds. Curvature, superelevations, city ordinances, slow orders, equipment restrictions and factors such as horsepower per ton and tons per operative brake place further restrictions on given trains. For base maximum allowable speeds and FRA Track Classifications see:
Dark territory limits you to 49 mph ( me thinks the D&I falls under that)but Iowa Interstate has the same kind of territory but ran their trains at 40 instead of pushing the envelope.
I have run on the transcon in trains restricted to 55 due to mty cars. Should have heard the Ft Mad boys cry about that! But the best was the rail train we were on stuck at 25 from Chillicothe to Corwith!Them Z jockeys were fit to be tied lol.
Like others have said speed is dictated by track,cars,tons per operative brake,system special instructions,weather, and if the RFE is riding with you!
Is it ultimately the dispatcher, who says “take the train from point A to point B in about4-1/2 hours” ?
Hmmm never had a detainer ( dispatcher) tell me the time limit. Most trains are figured b how fast tehy run and the local conditions. You can be detained cause the aforementioned DS put a local in front of you and now you have to wait while he switches the next 4 towns cause there is no way around him. You just mrk it on your delay report and go on your way.I know on a set of MTYS from Galesbur to Creston Iowa it can take as little as 4 and ahalf to 5 hours.Back with loads I have made it in 6 to 7.Its the bad tripas that get you on the law and its trickl down from there. My train died so yours died and doinos back.Pretty soon your out of dog catch crews so everything sits and melts down.
Now back in the day when you had a timecard saying this train is to be here at this time then next station at this time,and engineers and conductors could make up time then the DS would not have to tell you when you need to be there cause its already known.He may push you along though griping bout why your in the hole waiting for someone no where near you.
Rail operations are rarely spread out over time. The reality of 6 or 7 trains in a day is that 5 of them will be operating within the same 4 hour period and competing for the track resources. If track is maintained to 50 MPH standards and the train is powered to be able to maintain 50 MPH…then it had better operate at 50 MPH as to operate slower would have the carrier wasting maintenance monies in maintaining the track to the 50 MPH standards.
Well yes and no. If the dispatcher is keeping an open route, keeping signals lined so the train is getting good signals, then the crew should run as fast as their power, timetable and rules allow.
If the train was going south from Sioux Falls, it is on BNSF track as far as Canton. From there to Elk Point (30.3 miles), it is state property operated by the D&I. Elk Point to Sioux City is BNSF – that is a portion of the old MILW line to Mitchell.
Granting the D&I track rights was one of the conditions in the agreement under which the State sold the line to the BNSF. Almost immediately upon acquiring it, BNSF upgraded to CWR.
The only track D&I owns itself is the 16.8 miles northeast of Sioux Falls to the rock quarry at Dell Rapids.
Is the D&I relatively quiet during the winter, and are they now hauling material at a normal rate?