Hey, Brakie, since this forum is so dead lately how 'bout we talk about track warrant operations?
And Track Warrants simplified Railroading?
Dumb question for the sake of discussion: Are railroads required to use some kind of track posession system?
Warrants, TOs, timetables, CTC are all great and make sense where you have multiple movements contending for the same section of track. As a counterexample, consider a shortline with a single engine and a handful of employees. There's only one train at a time, and everone's going to that maintenance is going to happen today on the switch to the Feed and Seed. Even if the shortline has 2 engines and runs two trains, why not use a couple of radios or cell phones to coordinate movement amongst themselves?
You are confusing authority and systems. There has to be some form of authorizing the use of the main track. It can be as simple as "yard limits" or operation on restricted speed. But someplace you have to define what that is. If you don't, I guarantee that there will be some sort of collision.
Dave H.
Yes. If you look at the number of rules it takes to operate by track warrants and the number of rules it takes to operate by timetable and train orders, its no comparison.
Dave H.
With train orders the crews had to make decisions and navigate themselves across the railroad using the timetable and their orders. With track warrants the trains are told exactly what to do and where to do it.
Dave H.
Although we used to have prescribed train order forms I've never seen a train order as complex as the TWC example found near the top of this thread. We used to combine two maybe three forms of train orders at most, never 18!
Keep it Brief and Clear was the maxim of that day.
A perfect example of the crews having to figure where to meet the opposing trains.Mine often annulled timefreights in one direction (usually inferior) running trains on wait orders in multiple sections and extras in the opposite direction only.
ABS signasl in anything but rule 251 territory didn't give any authority to go, the warrant, train orders, block authority or schedule was the authority. If the crew is making a decision on whether or not to go based on the ABS signals, there is probably going to be a life or death rules violation about to happen.Train crews were often also aided by ABS signals in making decisions.
Rule 5 applied anyplace that a time was stated, so it could be at a siding, a milepost, a station, pretty much anywhere. On GCOR territories (the western railroads) when they implemented TWc that eliminated superiority of trains and operation by timetable schedules, so there were no timetable times to clear.Even after implementation of TWC type rules train crews were not relieved from applying rule 5 (where time applies) in Yard Limits, Double Track and many terminal stations. They still had to be cognizant of timetable rules for timed trains (i.e. Passenger).
If the crew is making a decision on whether or not to go based on the ABS signals, there is probably going to be a life or death rules violation about to happen.
Dave H.