Does anyone know why the crossing pattern L-L-S-L came from? I can understand others for communication L-L, S-S-S, but the crossing pattern really has me stumped. I have asked a few engineers, and haven’t gotten an answer yet.
I think it was solely to make the crossing signal distinguishable from any other signal, and to get attention. The short blat in the middle breaks the steady rhythm that four longs would have, and that grabs the ear.
I’m sure there’s a name for that broken rhythm, but I don’t know it. Mrs. Nose is a musician, I’ll ask her sometime. [:)]
Look Listen Stop Live[:)]
A 1951 Gulf, Mobile, and Ohio Railroad rulebook (effective January 1, 1951) I have has five pages of whistle signals.
However, a glance at Bennett’s New Latin Grammar indicates that L-L-S-L is a spondee (L-L) followed by an iambus (S-L).
It is amazing the number of new hire conductors that have no idea what the whistle signals are. When i started the signals protected you and saved your life. If we didnt want to use are radio we used whistle and hand signals . and to this day i use hand signals when the radio is heavy with traffic. i have conductors ask me did you copy i need 3 step or you can take them ahead when your ready , I have had other engineers do what i do with whistle signals to stay off the radio, and they get the same response i had one conductor get on the engine and ask why i keep blowing the horn. i said i answered you. then i tell them instead of sleeping over there read your rule book, whistle signals and use them.
all whistle signals are specified in the rule book! you must know all signals to pass rules & FRA test. --any deviation from standards is a violation. the only correct signal for public grade crossings is __ __ __ o __ . hope this helps!
there is not a fra rule for passing a whistle signal test nor is there a test. whistle signals are not manditory , and the signal for crossings is to longs a short and then a long held til engine is thru the crossing. and signals used for control of traffic is not maditory either. the fra says if the carrier gives a signal test the engineer must make 100% on test to pass. i use whistle signals cause sometimes i just dont want to talk on the radio.
The last test I took had only one question concerning whistle signals
it was what is the signal for a public crossing, I guess the radio has
made a lot of these rules somewhat obselete, just think about rule 99,
with out a flagman (on a caboose) it is almost impossable for a person
to get to the rear of a long train and then go back over a mile to preform
flagging duties in a reasonable ammount of time, if there is a bridge in
the way he just cant get back there. jackflash
rule 99 took the responsibility of protecting your train from a crash away from the crew and into the hands of the dispatcher who only knows numbers ( milepost) and not terrain. it is his job now to keep trains from crashing. Most dispatchers now only know how to give warrents not run trains.
Uh, I think you meant __ __ o __ .
This side of the border, the only whistle signals that I regularly hear are 14L’s (crossings, per Rule 14L of the CROR) and o o o prior to reversing a road train.
Of course, rail traffic hereabouts is such that there’s seldom more than two crews within range of one another on the same channel.
What does spondee and iambus mean? And what does this have to do with a train crossing signal. I realize the need for communication (radio, whistle) but I am surprised at how many responses did not address my only question.
In Classical poetry, two long syllables are a Spondee, and a short syllable followed by a long syllable is an iambus. These are used to determine meter in a line of poetry. The approach was meant to be a tongue-in-cheek response to the following coment from BentnoseWillie:
Are you trying to determine if the whistle signals are based on Morse code?
Not really, but most whistle codes are based on quick understanding given existing conditions: moving = one long blast = stopping , two short = starting , three short = reversing. Oh well long-long-short-long is the letter Q in morse code, but that does not mean anything. I suppose if it would have been “X” that might work, but it isn’t. All I wanted to know is if it came from a particular source, and meant something specific.
Later
Keep on Trainin’
Originally, the pattern for a grade crossing was LLSS. However, engineers found it hard to time the short to hold over the crossing, so they had it extended into a long, hence LLSL. I suppose the original LLSS was long and different enough to get attention.
[quoteThe approach was meant to be tongue-in-cheek rsponse to the following coment from BentnoseWillie:
[/quote]
Ah, but I’m talking music, not poetry. I was thinking syncopation, but that isn’t correct, according to Mrs. Nose. Irregular rhythm, for lack of a better term.
Every once in a while i’ll hear a constant blast for a long time, does this mean something is on the track that shouldn’t be?
Adrianspeeder
the funniest thing i everseen is the automatitic horn pedal on some of the newer locomotives. we call it a 70 mph horn. it gives the standard crossing signal but it only would work if you were going 70.i like in territory where you have multiple crossings so you can keep your eyes on the idiots at the crossings.
It has been MY experience that if the horn is blowing, the Train is really close to the crossing. And if you are at the crossing too, YOU GONNA LOSE!!!
Yup. One looooong blat is usually “get the %#@@ out of the way!”.
On the other hand, a couple of short blats is usually “wuzzup” around here, oftentimes directed at railfans. They still like us here.