Ask a Railroad Conductor

[Overflow]

I think I have a pretty good one..

Do you think that the train/railroad industry is being phased out due to other transportation advances such as planes and trucks?

[Tayap79]

Originally Posted by Overflow

I think I have a pretty good one..

Do you think that the train/railroad industry is being phased out due to other transportation advances such as planes and trucks?

Fellow RR employee here...I'll jump in too.

Railroads will always have a place in the US when hauling freight. The number of trucks that trains have taken off highways is a massive number. Now there are movements in place to try to steal traffic away from railroads, the proposed double trailer big rigs with higher weight limits for instance. Nothing anyone wants to see. =more trucks on the roads =more wear on the road = crappier highways. Alot of upkeep if it were come to pass.

The cost to haul freight long distances are significantly less compared to the railroads.

[Est.July.4.1776]

Originally Posted by CamaroSkooter

He said each car is roughly 140 tons. Which is 280,000 pounds.

19,000 tons is 38,000,000 pounds (38 million pounds)

And yeah, if each car is 53 feet long from coupler to coupler, then just the cars stretches over 1.25 miles

And our coal trains are right around 8,000 feet, so you're spot on.

[Retro69]

Okay I have another one....

For some reason I have always associated conductors with passenger trains. It never occurred to me there were conductors for freight trains. For freight trains I have always thought engineer and brakeman. So what's the role of a brakeman these days vs a conductor?

[CamaroSkooter]

I also have a question. And while it doesn't deal with freight trains, it's still train related.

What are your thoughts on high-speed commuter trains?

[Est.July.4.1776]

Originally Posted by Overflow

I think I have a pretty good one..

Do you think that the train/railroad industry is being phased out due to other transportation advances such as planes and trucks?

Absolutely not.

Originally Posted by Tayap79

Fellow RR employee here...I'll jump in too.

Railroads will always have a place in the US when hauling freight. The number of trucks that trains have taken off highways is a massive number. Now there are movements in place to try to steal traffic away from railroads, the proposed double trailer big rigs with higher weight limits for instance. Nothing anyone wants to see. =more trucks on the roads =more wear on the road = crappier highways. Alot of upkeep if it were come to pass.

The cost to haul freight long distances are significantly less compared to the railroads.

(Trains were here well before trucks, but that's really neither here nor there...) It takes 1 gallon of fuel to move 1 ton of freight 480 miles, so it's more efficient than trucking simply by the sheer volume of freight that is able to be moved, and it's faster- we don't have to deal with rush hour traffic... Also, to the point of not wanting the wear and tear on the roads (which is a great talking point), keep in mind, when those roads need to be repaired, it's your tax dollars that are spent repairing them... more trucks = more repairs = more tax dollars spent. The railroads maintain their own rail and infrastructure. It's also good to note the efficiency of locomotives has increased... virtually all of the technology on the Volt was pioneered on diesel locomotives almost 70 years ago... regenerative braking is known to us railroaders as dynamic braking, and the trains operate on traction motors, too. I can't imagine the amount of fuel and semi trucks it would take to haul 19,000 tons of coal, not to mention the added congestion to an already bottle-necked highway system.

What I see is an evolution of rail traffic, and railroads in general. The small industry work that railroads were once based around is fading away in lieu of more 'hook and haul' type transportation where trains move freight from point a to point b with minimal 'in between' work. Intermodal trains are a prime example... the containers come in on ships, are loaded onto rail cars (we call them 'pigs') and are taken to their destination where they are then loaded onto semi truck trailers. It's brilliant, efficient, and most likely the wave of the future.

Another thing to consider is with the increase in importation of goods, someone has to haul those goods. Hauling by air simply isn't efficient, nor is it logical considering all of the air traffic already in place, and I've already stated the down-side to trucking.

I'd love to see more efficient railroading as time progresses, but what you're seeing now is a streamlining of sorts. There were once hundreds of different railroads, all with their own trackage, sometimes from the same point a to the same point b; now that bigger (class 1) railroads have merged or purchased most of the smaller railroads, a lot of the non-essential track is being pulled from service, and getting removed.

Good question, though... I always have people tell me, "I thought we were phasing out railroads." It's quite the opposite... rail traffic has actually increased.

Also, something kinda cool to keep in mind, 25% of railroad employees are military veterans... the railroad loves to hire people with military experience.



Also, here's a good graphic on how the railroad invests it's money:

[Est.July.4.1776]

Originally Posted by CamaroSkooter

I also have a question. And while it doesn't deal with freight trains, it's still train related.

What are your thoughts on high-speed commuter trains?

They're fun to ride on... The only concern I have is just like racing... when something goes wrong, it goes wrong fast... but considering how many high speed passenger trains operate daily without issue, I'm not overly concerned. I've done the high-speed Amtrak, and it was pretty awesome hitting 120mph.

[Est.July.4.1776]

Originally Posted by Retro69

Okay I have another one....

For some reason I have always associated conductors with passenger trains. It never occurred to me there were conductors for freight trains. For freight trains I have always thought engineer and brakeman. So what's the role of a brakeman these days vs a conductor?

Where I'm at, on the rare jobs that feature a conductor AND a brakeman, the brakeman is essentially the conductor's b*tch, and the conductor is in charge, and responsible for all activities and movements made by the train. Brakemen are only used on yard assignments, and it's to assist in lining switches, applying handbrakes and things of that nature. They make the job a million times more streamlined, and can actually increase productivity by about 4x.

To your point, we are all considered brakemen AND conductors. It just depends on what assignment you get called for as to which job you work as.

EDIT: Once upon a time, the jobs consisted of a conductor, a brakeman (possibly two) a signalman (possibly two), a fireman, and an engineer. The two man crews we have now-a-days are the reason for the higher pay. Those classifications were sold down the river, and as they were, a raise here, a raise there... Just like every other industry, greed prevails.

[FenwickHockey65]

I'm guessing you see idiots at railroad crossings all the time?

[Est.July.4.1776]

Originally Posted by FenwickHockey65

I'm guessing you see idiots at railroad crossings all the time?

I would say at LEAST five times a night...

My buddy had a great story a few months ago... we run through a very ritzy, populated area... high rent crowd... probably six railroad crossings, and always people walking across from bar to bar... one night he was clipping through and some dude booked it across the tracks in front of the train, so close that my buddy was fairly sure they were going to hit him. To his surprise, the engineer starts laughing hysterically; so hard that he hunched over crying exclaiming, "I'm gonna pee, I'm gonna pee, I'm gonna pee!!!", and he had to continuously sound the horn until he could regain his composure and explain what happened. Good news? The guy made it without getting hit. The bad news is when he made it to the other side and tried to jump the guardrail, his foot caught it and he tripped... into the fender of a car... and then his head bounced from that fender into another car and he just dropped. Apparently he left a pretty massive dent in the first car, so much so that the engineer could visually see it as it happened.

Hey, it may be cruel, but I have very little remorse for people that take their chances. He's lucky he probably just had a concussion... People don't seem to realize that when they do stupid sh*t like running the crossings, if they get hit, we have to live with that for the rest of our lives, too.

[ShnOmac]

Originally Posted by Est.July.4.1776

Also, something kinda cool to keep in mind, 25% of railroad employees are military veterans... the railroad loves to hire people with military experience.

First off.... Thank you for the thread and all the info you are sharing. VERY COOL


As to your remark above... I am waiting to be part of that 25%. My local BSNF rarely has openings though. Seems like no one ever quits...

[Est.July.4.1776]

Originally Posted by ShnOmac

First off.... Thank you for the thread and all the info you are sharing. VERY COOL


As to your remark above... I am waiting to be part of that 25%. My local BSNF rarely has openings though. Seems like no one ever quits...

Just be patient... unless you're willing to relocate... then do that. lol

[ShnOmac]

Originally Posted by Est.July.4.1776

Just be patient... unless you're willing to relocate... then do that. lol

Touche.

[Bowtiepower00]

Double post deleted