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Itzena posted:And from the Speaking of Fairlies, they weren't exclusively narrow gauge either. In fact the Lehigh Valley Railroad had one for a short period of time named Janus. The loco wasn't purchased by the LVRR as much as never left the property though. It was ordered by the Central Pacific, and tested on the Boston and Albany, followed by the LVRR where it ended its life as it proved inferior to a regular steam locomotive. 
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Mar 10, 2013 05:31
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of narrow gauge to the 
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kind of a cool video http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=cf1_1321820747
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Mar 10, 2013 07:23
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ctishman posted:I just wonder what makes them behave that way, and what sort of cultural shift it would take to drag them out of the 19th century, attitude-wise. Good question. I know much of the control components we sell are really old designs that are terribly complicated, labor intensive, and costly. It's not uncommon for me to come across drawings originally drafted over 100 years ago. This becomes particularly problematic when you have to replace a lot of the stuff quickly ala Hurricane Sandy. I can understand though the mentality of sticking with what you know works.
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Mar 10, 2013 16:36
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Styles Bitchley posted:Good question. I know much of the control components we sell are really old designs that are terribly complicated, labor intensive, and costly. It's not uncommon for me to come across drawings originally drafted over 100 years ago. This becomes particularly problematic when you have to replace a lot of the stuff quickly ala Hurricane Sandy. I can understand though the mentality of sticking with what you know works. I think that culture is baked into a company in its first few years and then crystallizes and can't be easily shifted unless there's some major, traumatic change. It gets passed on through generation after generation of workers in the form of a set of attitudes towards others in the business hierarchy, both above and below. In the case of the Class 1s, they've been able to operate inefficiently and unsafely and yet still make money hand over fist for the investors. They hold an 1870s attitude and have no real incentive to change things up because it works well enough. All of the 'safety culture' stuff with (as you said) first aid kit placement and little machines you have to smack every few minutes are band-aids to cover up the gaping wound in the culture – a wound that would require vast sums of money and time to change. I suppose I've answered my own question.
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Mar 10, 2013 18:45
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What's interesting is how 21st century millennials being hired by class 1 railroads though their management trainee programs are dealing with it. These are typically fresh college grads with financial, business, or engineering programs who get actively recruited and hired while still in school. After graduation they'll get an extended period of familiarization with the company, which could take a couple months up to an entire year, and may require lots of travel. After that they get direct placement into middle management in their field of expertise within the company. I know quite a few people who've gone this route, but only a few who are really happy with it. Some find they've run out of advancement options after >5 years, while others find that they don't want their employer dictating their lives with odd work schedules or moving them around the system every five years. From the corporation's perspective, perhaps the biggest issue here is that you've got brand new college grads plunked right down and working with baby boomers on the verge of retirement,* two generational groups which historically don't get along. Even with some of the most lucrative benefits you can find anywhere (very good health care, relatively stable employment, usually TWO pensions, stock options) lots of millennials are not sticking with these management trainee jobs, and wind up seeking work at more "progressive" entities. To a generation where the ideal workplace is something along the lines of what Google offers, a class 1 railroad seems like a combination of the Marine Corps with a pinch of extreme office politics thrown in. *It's never been explained to me why the railroads have this age gap in management, but I have a hypothesis: In 1980 the industry was deregulated, leading to large downsizing efforts which led to greater efficiency. At that point I'm pretty sure hiring into management became a mere trickle, and up until now it's been mostly the same group of baby boomers running the show.
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Mar 11, 2013 03:48
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In a few days I get to meet the CEO of the UPRR. How do I rate? What do I know? I know that all of the execs on the UPRR are not idiots. Their efforts at times might be a little misdirected and even at times self serving, but they are not idiots. They know their jobs and their interests, as they apply to their plans, inside and out. They have heard every backhanded compliment. Have a good and practiced answer to every criticism. How do I know? I have seen them hold their town hall meetings. They may get bit at the beginning of their road tour on their town hall meetings, when they are hit by each question they were not expecting. But they come up with a very practiced set of answers. I mean we are railroaders. We are not Rhodes Scholars, our existence is as simple as we are. We are paid well because the railroad makes us work under insane conditions, under insane work schedules, with a great responsibility over very expensive equipment and materials. Our most valuable reason for existence in this very litigious and overly corporate environment is to take the fall and blame when poo poo goes wrong. On average, the points we raise, and the arguments we make can easily be knocked in the dirt by any 2 year college student new hire manager running full bore on a Starbucks Venti.
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Mar 11, 2013 08:02
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I've just managed to find my old pictures of the 2009 Owosso Train Festival and it's giving me feelings all over again. A very nice worker at the Amtrak station in Durand directed me to an old wooden bridge outside out of town, and I got there in time to catch this moment:  Which was probably the best moment of that whole thing. 4449 is amazing to behold in-person. Other locomotives were fun to foam over too, but they just didn't match up to the Daylight:   
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Mar 14, 2013 04:35
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bytebark posted:What's interesting is how 21st century millennials being hired by class 1 railroads though their management trainee programs are dealing with it. Railroad don't just recruit grads, they also recruit internally. The internal recruits tend to be older, much much wiser in terms the railroad business, and already have some measure of respect from the craft employees. It also may come as a surprise to some, but just because they came from the crafts doesn't mean they are stupid or even uneducated( my RR offers substantial tuition money, and dozens of internal online classes for free, to ALL employees.) When it comes time for a promotion, the new grad is up against a seasoned, wise, respected employee with an extensive network. A degree just doesn't carry the weight you might expect.
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Mar 14, 2013 20:09
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Often, we poke fun at the young managers that come in, they often move through like a revolving door. We have a new young kid in right now. Just turned 24, married and a new kid on the way. I have a feeling his new job will chew him up and spit him out. We often give him crap if his mom dropped him off and packed his lunch. Poor kid looks like he is going to cry on a daily basis. If your skin is thin, this is a brutal job. Luckily, we pick on each other just as bad, and wonder how a box car would get switched. Every one is the worst switchman in the world around here according to the conversations in the yard office.
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Mar 14, 2013 20:18
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While all of that is very true, guys from the craft (from what I've heard, this might be specific to Engineering) are by no means jumping over each other for a chance to get into management. Almost everyone I knew who had come up from the craft kept up on their union dues to preserve their seniority in the case they wanted to go back, and there were plenty of men who had done just that after they'd had enough of management. Managers get a bit more vacation time, relocation assistance, use of a company vehicle, 401k matching and (maybe!) an end-of-year bonus, but they're also the first ones called when anything goes wrong and they'll own the problem until it's fixed. Being on salary means your hourly wage goes down the more hours you work, and the norm in the track department was 60-70 hours a week with plenty of weekends thrown in. Guys in the craft, protected by a union agreement, have the option of refusing overtime (outside of an emergency) and earn time and a half when they take it. After overtime was figured in, many of the track guys had earned by August what their managers would make the entire year.
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Mar 14, 2013 21:15
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NoWake posted:After overtime was figured in, many of the track guys had earned by August what their managers would make the entire year. This is especially true in train crew side of things. Heck, even yard guys (switchman are paid the lowest in railroad terms) most can make well over what the managers make. There are perks to each side, but most guys like the fact that they can make more than the boss with no stress. The only way your going to start making more money in management is when you start moving up. I am talking superintendent levels. At least a couple steps above trainmaster levels.
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Mar 14, 2013 21:23
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BrokenKnucklez posted:
My understanding (admittedly mostly from the outside) is that the HR people are shoving these management candidates through the system. I've heard one Amtrak upper level manager say that "someone with a degree in horticulture could get in our management trainee program." And even if you get a degree in something rail related, that's no guarantee it'll be of any use once you get out in the field. A buddy of mine has spent the last two years in graduate school, doing research on rail ballast (mostly using a grant from a passenger railroad, with the research tailored to their needs). He's graduating soon, entering a management trainee program, and supposedly after that he'll be a roadmaster for a class 1 on a low-speed freight line in the rockies. I wish him the best but doubt he's going to last very long.
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Mar 14, 2013 23:19
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Strawberry posted:Looks like I will be joining the big orange railroad (you know the one) in California as an MOW laborer. Received conditional offer last week, and I was just notified that I passed the medical. I am excited and nervous at the same time. I have done heavy labor before (distribution center). Anyone here work MOW? Can't wait to start! Anyone? My friends are surprised I took this job and plan to stick with it, considering I have a degree. From what you guys say about managers it seems like the better option to start at the bottom rather than go straight into management.
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Mar 15, 2013 08:58
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Strawberry posted:Anyone? TBH, it sounds like any large, subsidized workforce. The management is less than half the age of most of the workforce, so they don't know how the job really works. They know what they've been trained. You keep a thick skin. When someone calls you a douche-swilling cock-gobbling colostomy bag, just take that as "hey, pal." If they didn't like you, they wouldn't talk to you at all. You really, truly, in fact, know nothing about the way they really work; attempting to get the way you're told they work and the way they think they should work to coincide is your job, and you're VERY well paid for it. Basically nothing. Ask them what their job is. Ask your boss what your workers' jobs are. Tell your workers you're making their jobs the way they think they should be. Tell your boss you're making their workers' jobs the way they think they should be [ambiguity deliberate]. Get raise. Get your boss's job. Get lied to by college grads, collect fat paycheck. Get promoted. Get lied to by people who are paid to lie to people who want to believe they're not being lied to, but got to their position by lying to people in your position. This is the way of the
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Mar 15, 2013 12:12
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Strawberry posted:Anyone? I "may or may not" work for that same railroad in that same state, in that same department. I worked in retail before, and I had no idea what to expect. Let me tell you how my day went today. Went to work at 7 am, bullshitted in the office until about 830 about bars and stuff. Got gas, got to the job site about 11:00, called the dispatcher for track and time, waited on a train he said was the one, then waited on another, then another. By then it was 1230, got my 3 hours of track and time. Hit anchors for about 30 mins, watched the welders work for an hour. Then we started going back to the yard, got a call to fix some gravel so the train crews wont twist their little ankles walking to the vans ;-) did that then went home. Total work time = 2 hours maybe. A lot of days are like this. We are at the mercy of the trains. Other days are long, I've worked 30+ hours before. It's a demanding job, but honestly I would say it it more mentally demanding than physically. Your head ALWAYS has to be in the game. One mistake will KILL you. Say you request Main track 2, but set on Main 1 because you've had a long day, its dark and your new to the territory. Theres a good chance you could get hit by a train. At the very least you are going home, getting drug tested then going to an investigation. PM me, I want to find out where you hired on at, maybe you'll work near me and we can talk in person. It's always fun to meet new people. And it's been said a lot. but I will say it again. If you can't take jokes, don't even bother coming to work. I get my rear end handed to me EVERYDAY, it's a condition of employment out here. Be safe, work smarter not harder, follow the rules and you will be fine.
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Mar 16, 2013 01:27
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Rabid Anti-Dentite! posted:Insight Good info man, I appreciate it. I don't have PMs. Hit me up at strawberry1d1 at gmail
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Mar 16, 2013 03:29
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Strawberry, just sent you an email!
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Mar 16, 2013 03:46
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Rabid Anti-Dentite! posted:Then we started going back to the yard, got a call to fix some gravel so the train crews wont twist their little ankles walking to the vans ;-) Hey now! We prefer the fines....... Yes, its a great job. No one is in a hurry. No one. Work safe. If you think you can't grab that piece of equipment by yourself, don't. Ask for help, its OK, seriously, its not a big deal to ask for a little help. Its a pretty gravy gig. Work safe, keep your head in the game every second. A few years ago we had a super close call, almost hit a guy on the track our train was on. He wasn't paying attention, just set on Main 1 instead of Main 2. Talk about a heart pumper. Most of all, have fun. Learn to get made fun of, then learn how to flip it back. We screw with each other on a daily basis, and be prepared for a nickname that will stick with you for a long time.
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Mar 16, 2013 04:27
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BrokenKnucklez posted:Hey now! We prefer the fines....... Haha as long as I get paid, I'll put down a red carpet for you guys!
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Mar 16, 2013 05:27
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I start as an ops supervisor in an intermodal terminal on Monday. I'm pretty excited but I would have preferred to do transportation. If you're not a piece of poo poo retard, is it possible to switch departments after some time on the job?
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Mar 16, 2013 16:51
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Veins McGee posted:I start as an ops supervisor in an intermodal terminal on Monday. I'm pretty excited but I would have preferred to do transportation. If you're not a piece of poo poo retard, is it possible to switch departments after some time on the job? At my work, as long as your record is clean (no ops failures etc) you can craft transfer after a year. They only applies to the hourly employees though. I would think that as an exempt, you would just apply for a job. If you get any kind of moving package, you may have to wait 18 months before applying for another job.
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Mar 16, 2013 23:37
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BrokenKnucklez posted:Yes, its a great job. No one is in a hurry. No one. Having done time in retail and retail distribution, I think I might like this fact the most. Also, making dick jokes without worrying about customers hearing you.
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Mar 17, 2013 03:02
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Man... the best dirty jokes are always from rails.
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Mar 17, 2013 05:23
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BrokenKnucklez posted:Man... the best dirty jokes are always from rails. Amen to that, and they're usually quite creative! I once picked up a train, and after doing a job briefing with the conductor I was relieving, he picked up his stuff and started to walk off. He stopped, turned to me, and said, "Tex, do you know the difference between toilet paper and a shower curtain?" "No, what?" He stared at me, stony faced, and said, "So you're the one, huh?" and just walked off. I lost it in view of a roughly a hundred passengers gathered on the platform.
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Mar 17, 2013 16:03
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Trains? I fill some cars with hazardous waste...it's okay at best and boring as hell at worst. Never overload a car ever.
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Mar 18, 2013 02:13
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Here's an exciting day on a hump yard: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4wVtrofgOo
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Mar 18, 2013 03:03
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 This was the first comment on the article.
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Mar 18, 2013 11:25
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quote:Luckily there was no structural damage caused to the car's chassis, so it was only a matter of cleaning the train to remove the human debris and return it to a pristine state.  \/\/I just discovered that you can turn entire quote boxes into links and wanted to try it out with a video link. Megillah Gorilla fucked around with this message at 13:27 on Mar 18, 2013 |
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Mar 18, 2013 12:53
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edit: didn't realize that was what you were linking to already
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Mar 18, 2013 13:00
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A friend of mine posted this on Facebook recently: Said it was taken near Arcade, NY.
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Mar 18, 2013 16:24
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Lovie Unsmith posted:A friend of mine posted this on Facebook recently: just taking a shortcut
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Mar 18, 2013 17:06
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I thought so too at first, but there's a big X-shaped sign on the left side of the road so I guess it's a legit crossing. I asked my friend what it was and it's this: http://www.arcadeandatticarr.com/
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Mar 18, 2013 17:29
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Method Loser posted:just taking a shortcut Haven't you ever head of road trains? 
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Mar 19, 2013 00:48
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Yes. Yes I have.
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Mar 19, 2013 03:20
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So I checked my UPS shipment today and became very confused, I think this is relevant.
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Mar 19, 2013 04:15
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I've had train derailment as a status too. I think when I posted here it was said most likely it just means it went down the wrong track or something. Neat how detailed of a message it is compared to a generic "exception" error or whatever. edit: http://www.kirotv.com/news/news/hundreds-of-complaints-surface-about-ups-mysteriou/nD5Bj/ Kia Soul Enthusias fucked around with this message at 05:30 on Mar 19, 2013 |
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Mar 19, 2013 05:28
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CharlesM posted:http://www.kirotv.com/news/news/hundreds-of-complaints-surface-about-ups-mysteriou/nD5Bj/  big cover-up by saying that shipments were delayed due to a derailed train. It just wasn't the train carrying the packages, it turns out. "Derailed train" isn't the most descriptive explanation and I could understand how it would make customers a bit concerned for the safety of their parcels, but that lady seemed really, really paranoid over a bread maker. Cenodoxus fucked around with this message at 06:01 on Mar 19, 2013 |
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Mar 19, 2013 05:57
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2nd day on the job and my tenuous grasp of railroad organization was shattered once again. I thought yard masters were the yard counterpart to trainmasters but apparently not.
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Mar 19, 2013 23:34
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Unions get a bad rap in this country about 99% due to our media programming about the goings on of union jobs/employees. To that I would defer you to history: http://www.ble-t.org/pr/news/newsflash.asp?id=5414 quote:BLET enters 150th year
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Mar 20, 2013 03:49
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Saw a car vs train today out by Coal Canyon/Lovelock area. Looked to be a red Cadillac, I got some pictures, but I'll wait to upload them until I get home. http://goo.gl/maps/Y1Pct Hope it wasn't one of you guys.
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Mar 20, 2013 06:02
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