Talking to tourist-railroad train crews, I was advised that trains were proceeded with inspection vehicles checking for possible track defects/obstructions. I also recall reading that certain trains in certain territories were followed by inspection vehicles to check for possible fires. This activity has been “invisible” to me as I’ve never seen evidence of those inspections.
So, can you guys enlighten me further? For instance, are daily inspections usually done (not counting observations made from regular trains) on common-carrier railroads?
The inspections are made on a schedule set by Federal Law, the frequency depending on the class of track. Excepted and up to class 3 main track and sidings must be inspected weekly, other tracks monthly, class 4 and 5 main track and sidings track twice weekly. Other inspections (boulders, slides, high water ahead or fires behind) are made on an as needed basis on specific territories.
When I was a kid I spent a lot of time around the PGE mainline in West Vancouver. We always new when a train would be coming because about twenty minutes before every train a “jigger” would go by. The terrain is treacherous up to Pemberton, with boulders always falling on the tracks and lots of avalanches. CN now runs the show. I don’t know what the inspection schedule is like in these more modern times. They probably have cameras all along as it is still rough ground to run a railway.
I don’t think what you were told qualifies as “track inspection”. More like a route inspection. I rode the Durango and Silverton a couple of times back in the 70’s. Once when I was there I was walking the tracks when a speeder came along. They were checking the route and the train wasn’t too far behind. What you were told by the tourist train crew was correct. What I don’t know is if this is required on tourist railroads, or just something they do to be safe.
Common carrier railroads operate under a different set of rules.
My recent tourist railroad adventure was on the Grand Canyon Railway. On the return trip the inspectors had placed a yellow flag along the right-of-way, requiring the train to slow to 15 mph for several miles. We saw no obvious reason for the flag, and the conductor said he didn’t know either. I forgot to ask what kind of vehicle the inspectors use.
I think you could lump “track inspections” into three general classes.
All the main line railroads inspect their tracks very regularly, with the frequency sometimes mandated by regulations, looking for signs of developing problems in the rails and roadbed. This is done when track time is available, and sometimes that can lead to some heated discussion between the would-be patroller and the dispatcher. It may not be quite daily, but usually more than weekly.
A second class is patrolling ahead of every train in rugged areas where the natural scenery is not very well attached. A speeder or hi-rail vehicle can stop short of a slide faster than a train, and radio back to give warning. This type of patrol means extra cost for the railroad, so it is only used where there is a real history of problems over a considerable distance . You can run quite a few patrols for the cost in money and lives of a major derailment. It is a nightmare for the bean counters since the savings, while real, can’t be quantified and all they see are these expenses “with no return”. In the past some areas had a track walker assigned to a particularly problematic stretch. Today Geotechnical Engineers will try to identify specific hazards, and a program of rock scaling, rock bolting and/or shotcrete can mitigate the problem. Slide fences are another alternative but work best where there are only one or two places to be concerned about
The third class is where a line sees only occasional trains, and the patrol goes out ahead to see that if any rails have been stolen, trees fallen, etc., since the previous train.
I was a Track inspector for the Soo Line during the 70’s and 80’s. We patrolled roughly a 90-100 mi. territory daily with a speeder (later a Hi-rail vehicle). We worked 6 days a week(3 round trips) Mon. thru Sat. We were paid for 5 days and accumulated 1 rest day. After 10 weeks, you took 2 weeks off with pay. In later years, this was changed to 5 days a week( 2 round trips and 1 day inspecting terminal yard tracks).We looked for anything that was not in compliance with FRA standards for the class of track that was being inspected. Track inspectors carried basic tools and necessary flags. We made simple repairs (replace/tighten bolts, check crossing signals, etc) as time permitted. Other defects were written up and left with the appropriate section crew. If necessary a slow order or impassable track order would be placed and flagged depending on what was found(pull-apart, broken rail, broken anglebars, sunkink, etc). We worked pretty much normal hours-- 7am-4pm. Section crews patrolled as necessary when fires were reported, cows on track, heavy rains, etc. It seems to me that there was a rule to the effect a section foreman was to inspect his territory without being instructed to anytime he thought conditions warranted.
