‘Monster train’ rolls through SoCal
Posted by Lou on Jan 13, 2010
LOS ANGELES — An apparently unprecedented, super freight train extending about 3-1/2 miles rolled through Southern California over the weekend, catching state regulators off guard and prompting concerns about potential safety risks and traffic delays, The Los Angeles Times reported.
Freight trains a vital link in the global supply chain
Posted by Lou on Jan 5, 2010
More than 4,000 miles of train tracks stretch through California, winding up the blustery Cajon Pass and snaking through the desert surrounding Barstow.
Those tracks could be seeing a lot more traffic in the next few years as trains loaded with Chinese-made toys, electronics and clothing roll eastward, connecting West Coast ports with cities across the United States.
Warren Buffett is a believer. In November, the world’s second-richest man paid $34 billion for railroad giant Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp., despite a deep downturn in the railroad industry. Buffett characterized his investment as an “all-in wager on the economic future of the United States.” But it’s also a bet on globalization and the renewed importance of rail in the nation’s transportation network.
Union Pacific alters tunnels for double-stacked trains to reach Reno
Posted by Lou on Dec 28, 2009
Union Pacific Railroad has raised the roof on 15 of its tunnels over Donner Pass in the Sierra, allowing double-stacked trains to cross the pass and go through Reno for the first time on the way to Chicago.
When the effects of the recession ebb, more trains could be coming through Reno and Sparks. Up to now, double-stacked trains have been routed through the longer and more difficult Feather River Canyon north of Reno.
The development might allow former Reno Mayor Jeff Griffin to consider himself redeemed for pushing to build the downtown railroad trench, which was completed in 2005 at a cost of $282 million.
In the late 1990s, Griffin often said the day would come when the tunnel roofs would be raised for cars carrying double-stacked cargo containers from Pacific Rim countries unloaded at the Port of Oakland.
“It took a little longer than I thought,” said Griffin, who ran a international shipping business in Reno for years and recently saw his first double-stacked train on the route east of Fernley. “I just know that it was a business decision a multibillion company had to make.”
While Griffin predicted the number of trains a day would jump substantially, critics railed against city plans to build a railroad trench and eliminate crossings in downtown. Opponents feared cost overruns and dangers from floods or earthquakes.
Tom Lange, Union Pacific western spokesman, said 15 to 18 trains a day are routed through Reno, about the same as before the tunnels were finished in November. He said there is no way to know how many more trains will be coming.
“Our volume is based on the economy and customer needs,” he said. “There’s not really a way to project future transportation volume.”
He said dispatching is based on traffic across a 32,000-mile network in 23 states.
“So trying to pinpoint some peak level of train volume would be speculative at best,” he said.
Union Pacific spent about $2.6 billion in the past year to improve its rail system while business was slow because of the recession. Read the rest of this entry »
My Letter to the Railroad
Posted by Lou on Sep 25, 2009
It’s now a week ago that I was very frustrated with the work and furlough Situation that I decided to write a letter to Union Pacific Railroad. I did not expected an answer, just wanted to get something out that’s bordering me. Here is my Letter:
Hello,
Since 2006 I am with Union Pacific Railroad as a Conductor in the Roseville Hub. I love to work for UP – if I only get a chance. In my long Railroad Career (I worked for 17 years with the German Railroad) I’ve never expected a situation like this : several hundreds of Employees are furlough now. The Situation is very bad and the hope to get back to work get’s lower and lower.
There is no financial help or other support from UP for us. I am very glad to have the Health Insurance going on for 4 months.
Every day I am expecting and waiting to go back to work. You can imagine the situation we are in.
What does Union Pacific Railroad expect from me ? Do you want me to come back and be ready for work once there is enough work ?
The answer after the break. Read the rest of this entry »
The Alaska Railroad has laid off 127 employees
Posted by Lou on Sep 23, 2009
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The Alaska Railroad has laid off 127 employees.
Railroad CEO Pat Gamble announced the move in a company letter late Tuesday afternoon.
The layoffs affect everyone, from high-level managers to workers on the front lines, and include people across the state.
A weakening economy, production cuts at Flint Hills Refinery and less passenger traffic are blamed.
Last week the board said the railroad needed to cut staff to avoid a $10 million deficit next year.
“This downsizing does not, by itself, solve our financial problems … the challenge is not one seen before in the railroad’s history of state ownership,” Gamble wrote in his letter to employees.
“The size of the cuts is surprising for me,” said Jeffrey Davies, the president of the Alaska Railroad Workers Union Local 183.
Davies says his bargaining unit experienced the largest hit, and that 26 of his members are being let go.
“It’s been difficult, the anxiety and not knowing. Now we know and we have to try and understand what that means for the rest of the employees,” said Davies.
One casualty was Anchorage Assembly member Patrick Flynn.
A senior railroad officer who has been with the corporation since 2001, Flynn blogged about how he offered himself up, but hoped it wouldn’t come to that.
“I felt the remaining people were simply too important to daily railroad operations,” Flynn wrote in his blog.
Reflecting on the last few weeks, Flynn says cuts were being made, but suddenly the situation became dire and he was told the process was “too little too late — we needed to make plans for quicker, more significant cuts,” his blog reads.
State labor economist Neil Fried says the cuts are significant, and he emphasized that they are quality jobs that no longer exist.
“So we are talking about high quality jobs being lost so the quality is also a factor because these are good paying jobs in Alaska labor force,” said Fried.
Operation Live Saver
Posted by Lou on Sep 17, 2009
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Operation Lifesaver wants to help to protect people when it comes to Xings. It’s a great Program and on the Website (http://www.oli.org/index.php) you can find lot’s of Information and Download able Packages for School, Kindergarden or even for your Children at home. Complete the Quiz and you can win a cool T-Shirt. Give it a try, it keeps Railroad make a safe place to be and to work. How much does a train weigh? 6,000 tons is correct! A typical locomotive weighs approximately 400,000 pounds or 200 tons. When 100 rail cars are added to the locomotive, the train can weigh approximately 6,000 tons. The weight ratio of an automobile to a train is proportional to a soda can and an automobile. |
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How far does it take for a 100-car train moving 55 miles per hour to stop?
The length of 18 football fields is correct! Trains cannot stop quickly. It is a simple law of physics: the huge weight and size of the train and the speed of the train dictate how quickly it can stop under ideal conditions. A 100-car freight train traveling at 55 miles per hour will need more than a mile to stop – that’s approximately 18 football fields – once the train is set into emergency braking. |
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Railroad tracks with rusty rails or weeds growing up between the ties are usually no longer in use.
False is correct! If there are rails on the railroad ties, assume that the track is in use, even if there are weeds or the track looks “rusty.” |
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Trains only go in one direction on a designated track.
False is correct! Trains can move in either direction at any time. Trains are sometimes pushed by locomotives instead of being pulled. This is especially true in commuter and light rail passenger service. |
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It’s OK for the general public to enter and be on railroad property without permission.
False is correct! Railroad tracks, trestles, yards and equipment are owned mostly by private companies and trespassers are subject to arrest and fine. |
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Approximately how many miles of railroad tracks are there in the United States?
140,000 miles is correct! According to the Association of American Railroads, there are approximately 140,000 miles of track in America which require constant and vigilant inspection, maintenance, repair and replacement by railroads in order to keep freight and passenger trains moving safely. |
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How far do trains extend beyond the rail?
Three feet or more is correct! A train may extend three feet or more outside the steel rail on both sides of the track, which makes the safety zone for pedestrians well beyond the rails themselves. If you are in the right of way next to the tracks, you can be hit by the train. |
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Who has the right of way at train crossings?
Trains is correct! Trains have the right of way 100% of the time – over ambulances, fire engines, cars, the police and pedestrians. |
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Trains can be deceptively quiet when approaching.
True is correct! Modern trains are quieter than ever, with no telltale “clickety-clack.” Also, an approaching train will always be closer and moving faster than you think. |
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If no train is present at a crossing, it’s OK to disregard flashing signals and proceed through the crossing.
False is correct! Flashing red lights signal that a train is approaching from either direction. You can be fined for failure to obey these signals. Do not cross the tracks immediately after a train passes. A second train might have been blocked by the first. Trains can come from either direction. DO NOT cross the tracks until the lights have stopped flashing and it is safe to do so. |
Furlough rate goes up, my mood goes down
Posted by Lou on Sep 15, 2009
This morning I checked the boards. A few hours later the big shock: 71 furlough in Roseville, 54 in Oakland, 24 in Ozol and 12 in San Luis Obispo – not talking about the other stations along the Lines. Within a few hours 11 more furlough in Roseville. That is unbelievable. The Statistics show more Car Loads (the best month since December 2008) – everything is going up, so the furloughs. What’s going on there ?
Oh MAN, I am so mad right now. I want to put my Steel Toe Shoes (still the original once I’d by in Roseville while in the New Hire Class – just don’t have enough time to wear them off) into somebody’s Telly Device – not to get a Brown Nose – the other kind of kicking.
Nice to hear that the German Railroad is offering ~400 new Training positions this year for New Hires with guarantee to work after a 3 year Training period. They know how many people are leaving this year for retirement so they can calculate. Not one of the biggest Railroad in the World can do such thing ? Something is fishy here behind the curtain. I am still too trustworthy to see the big picture I guess.
The new Hours of Service implemented this year did not help at all; at last for us furlough employees. Guys on the Extra Board are still working like crazy with a 14 hour rest between shifts – 6-7 days a week (if the week had 10 days they had/would work 9 days I am sure).
Can’t they spread the work between all of us ? Every time someone on the Extra Board lays off they should call one from the furlough board. How about that ? Everybody works 40 hours a week and if over get somebody from the furlough board or expand the boards so every body has work.
Just a few thoughts from me – nothing will change in the near future I guess/fear. It’s not the Carriers fault, it’s the System behind that lags. Let’s hope the economy will go up again and everybody is happy.
Railroad in Houston – Texas
Posted by Lou on Sep 1, 2009
Before highways, there were railroads — Houston’s first circulatory system. Civic boosters bragged in the 1920s that Houston was the place “where 17 railroads meet the sea.” The trains hauled cotton and grain. Downtown had three passenger stations.
Today, the freight trains carry petrochemicals and toys from China. The city has grown up around the tracks, tearing some lines out and hemming in the rest. Most people only notice trains when they are blocking a road. That happens a lot: The Texas Transportation Institute estimated 186,000 drivers are delayed every day by regional train traffic. Shippers lose millions every year because of delays. The circulatory system is clogged.
The No. 1 Reason I Don’t Trust This Market
Posted by Lou on Aug 12, 2009
The train drew round the bend and approached the crossing. The warning bells rang, and the barriers fell across the road. Then the engineer pulled four long blasts on his horn. Two 4,400-horsepower GE locomotives rolled past me at low speed… bending the rails with their weight. This was an express container train bound for Chicago…
“Shorter than normal,” I thought. “And more empties than usual.”
Last week, I was on vacation in California. While I was there, I took the opportunity to gauge railroad activity. We drove a hundred miles beside Union Pacific’s southern California mainline. This is one of the most important stretches of railroad in the country. It links the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles with the eastern seaboard. I was expecting to see dozens of trains. We only saw two…
Then we stopped in Los Angeles to ogle the huge tangle of idled Union Pacific locomotives outside the Port of Long Beach. There must have been over 100 of them.
Freight trains move our most important basic materials around the country… like coal, fertilizer, steel, and container boxes. By watching the trends on America’s freight railroads, you can get an excellent feel for the strength of the economy.
Union Pacific Spends $13 Million on Fort Worth Rail Intersection
Posted by Lou on Aug 6, 2009
Union Pacific Railroad reports that it is spending $13 million to upgrade track between Roanoke, Texas and Tower 55 in Fort Worth.
Tower 55 is a major juncture of rail lines that has prompted numerous complaints from Fort Worth motorists about emissions and traffic delays from trains.
Union Pacific crews are replacing more than 45,000 ties and renewing road surfaces at 38 grade crossings in a project scheduled to be completed next month. The railroad spent more than $400 million last year on capital projects in Texas.
