Three trains at Auburn Station, WA, 3-17-2015
Today I hung out at Auburn Station in Auburn, WA and caught three trains.
The weather was (not surprisingly) off and on rain so I started out on the covered pedestrian overpass at the station.
First up was a southbound manifest freight. She came down Main 1, then took the Auburn North crossover to Main 2. BNSF 780 (C44-9W) was the lead loco.
Sorry for the background noise. There was a crew powerwashing the platforms. The supervisor was watching for approaching trains and gave two blasts on an air horn to tell his crew to stop the power washers and stand clear of the tracks. Good safety procedure.
There was a Form B restriction in place in the area for some trackwork being done just to the south.
To the right of the tracks you can see the truck containing the foreman that was in charge of the Form B. You can also see the red flags next to the track that mark the limits of the Form B area.
All trains approaching the Form B area must call the foreman and obtain permission to enter his limits. Needless to say, this makes railfanning much easier as you get a heads up on the scanner when a train approaches.
The train slowed down as she was pulling off the main and into Auburn Yard. I ran down the stairs to the platform to get a good angle on that action.
The rain slacked off so I was able to stay on the platform to shoot.
Next up was a southbound Amtrak Cascades train. AMTK 23 (P42DC) was in the lead as she rocketed past the station.
The final train was a vehicle train led by BNSF 4681 (C44-9W). Behind was a faded SD and a Norfolk Southern loco that was way out of her normal territory.
This train was on Main 2 and also slowed down as she entered Auburn Yard. She came to a complete stop, I assume to line a switch. As the brakes released the train started rolling backward. I knew would result in a hellacious bang as the slack was taken up when the engineer throttled up. I wasn't disappointed - it was a mighty BANG! Hope the cars inside the autoracks were strapped down tight!
Freight:
780 / 1078
C44-9W / C44-9W
Amtrak:
23 / 470
P42DC / F59PHI
Vehicle:
4681 / 8949 / NS 8038
C44-9W / SD70MAC / ES44AC
Пікірлер: 13
Nice as usual SRF. I really like your on picture captions.
@SeattleRailFan
9 жыл бұрын
Thanks. I like giving some explanation of what's going on. This helps out people who aren't familiar with railroad operations. And some of my explanations are specific to operations or locations in this area, which is helpful for people that aren't local to the Seattle region.
The no tresspasing culture on US railroads seem a bit silly when almost all the cars have shity tags on them...Anyway good video..I loved the slack action..Running US freights in a sim (Run8) seems that the engineer of that autorack realeased the brakes and didnt wait the slack to adjust..Istead he noched up while the cars where rolling backwards streching violently the train.Thats my guess..But anyway this is flat terrain so no big deal..On a grade this would tear some knuckle apart
I'm curious what the red bar on the hitch of the last car is. What does it do, how is it attached etc. Thanks It's part of my day checking to see if you've got a new one up. Especially like in the yard work. Mark
@SeattleRailFan
9 жыл бұрын
bonterrabees The red thing on the coupler of the last car is a FRED (Flashing Rear End Device), also known as an End Of Train Device. These devices replaced the crew riding in a caboose on the end of trains. They are plugged into the brake line of the car and monitor brake line pressure at the rear of the train. If the train brakes are placed into Emergency Stop, the FRED can also dump brake line pressure from the rear of the train. Dumping pressure from both end of the train allows it to stop faster. The FRED is in radio contact with a device in the loco call the Head Of Train Device. This is commonly known as a "Wilma". If you don't get the reference, think The Flintstones cartoon. Traditionally a red light or red flag is placed on the end of the last car of a train. The FRED also provides this function. This is because in earlier times, sometimes a train would be split into two sections. For example, say you have 100 cars that need to be on the 8AM Seattle to Spokane train. Let's say that run is called the SEASPO. In the steam era, only one loco pulled a train. If a loco can only pull 60 cars, how do you get all 100 to Spokane? You split the SEASPO run into two sections. You use two locos, each pulling 50 cars. The first train would leave at 8AM and NOT have a red flag on the rear car. The second train would leave a few minutes later and it WOULD have a red flag on the end. That way, any other crews on the railroad that see the SEASPO pass by would see no red flag on the first train and know that there is another train, the 2nd section, also coming. This is very important info, if for example, you were instructed by dispatch to wait for the SEASPO to pass before coming out on the mainline track. The red flag tells you if that is the end of the train or if another section is coming. Much of this isn't applicable now with crews in radio contact and the ability of diesel engines to be ganged together to provide enough power for much longer trains. Wew! That was probably more info that you needed...
Another good video SRF! I'll be there in May passing through to Montana. I change trains but only have 2hrs , might be enough time to catch a train? Gregg-)
@SeattleRailFan
9 жыл бұрын
You're changing trains at King Street Station in Seattle? You'll have a good chance of seeing trains as that section of the mains keeps pretty busy. From the platform you can see both the northbound and southbound dwarf signals so that'll give you a heads up that something's coming.
@FishplateFilms
9 жыл бұрын
SeattleRailFan I think so , I'm coming from Vancouver on the Cascade? , then get the Empire Builder to Essex. I will look out for the dwarf signals , good tip! I will stay at the station I think, don't wan't to get lost and miss the train! Cheers Gregg.
nice video
good job!
OK, what's Form B?
@SeattleRailFan
9 жыл бұрын
winglessviper A Form B is a kind of Track Bulletin. Track Bulletins are used to modify the permanent rules and instructions normally in place on a railroad. Different railroads may use different terms, this is what is used on BNSF in my area. The Form A is a temporary speed restriction. If, for example, a switch is damaged and trains needed to slow down across the switch, a Form A would be issued for that location. I've heard Dispatch asking crews if they have been informed of a Form A on their route and sometimes Dispatch will give it to them verbally over the radio. A Form B is used to protect men and equipment working near the tracks. All trains approaching a Form B area must contact the foreman in charge and request permission to enter his limits. They inform the foreman of their loco number, direction and which track they will be on. The foreman will check with the work crew to make sure they are clear of that track and notify them a train is approaching. The foreman may give the train crew instructions such as a speed limit or request bell and whistle as they pass. On a couple of my videos I have captured the crews and foreman talking on the radio and included it in the video. To hear what the Form B conversation sounds like, try these videos: kzread.info/dash/bejne/pKtlrauho5XQqbA.html kzread.info/dash/bejne/hYZ2qst8Y9THY9Y.html kzread.info/dash/bejne/mGdhlbqqmKm8f9o.html
@winglessviper
9 жыл бұрын
Danke.