Big Boys' Train Sets
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Cambridge, England, EU
Posts: 3,438
Big Boys' Train Sets
Sitting at dinner in Field BC, watching the Canadian Pacific Railway. Typical train: 146 trucks, four locomotives (two at the front, one in the middle, one at the back). Two containers on each truck - how did they know, more than a century ago, to build all the bridges and tunnels high enough?
So, just under 300 juggernauts' worth. And we could also watch the Trans Canada Highway, passing through the same valley, apparently carrying vastly less container freight.
Compare and contrast the F2N railway vs the A14, and wonder who is getting it right and who is getting it wrong.
So, just under 300 juggernauts' worth. And we could also watch the Trans Canada Highway, passing through the same valley, apparently carrying vastly less container freight.
Compare and contrast the F2N railway vs the A14, and wonder who is getting it right and who is getting it wrong.
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: Kelowna Wine Country
Posts: 468
Is it smokey there?
The trouble with trains in Canada is that, apart from a couple of high speed corridors, they are designed only for freight and trains run at an average of about 35 miles an hour. On many lines it is actually mandated that passenger trains must give way to freight. For distances over about three hundred miles aircraft are more convenient ( even with airports.) That's a very small distance in Canada.
By the way that's a train shortened for the mountains. You should see them out on the prairies. There's one goes through Winnipeg you can wait at a crossing for nearly two days!
The trouble with trains in Canada is that, apart from a couple of high speed corridors, they are designed only for freight and trains run at an average of about 35 miles an hour. On many lines it is actually mandated that passenger trains must give way to freight. For distances over about three hundred miles aircraft are more convenient ( even with airports.) That's a very small distance in Canada.
By the way that's a train shortened for the mountains. You should see them out on the prairies. There's one goes through Winnipeg you can wait at a crossing for nearly two days!
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Cambridge, England, EU
Posts: 3,438
On Saturday visibility was a couple of hundred metres in smoke. It's lots better now.
The trains we saw weren't doing anything like 35 mph - looked to me more like a fast cycling speed.
The trains we saw weren't doing anything like 35 mph - looked to me more like a fast cycling speed.
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: Everett, WA
Age: 66
Posts: 3,552
In the US, most east-west rail lines are operating at or near capacity (my sister's husband - retired railroad engineer - claims this is largely because the railroads abandoned large amounts of track as a tax write-off rather than pay for the needed maintenance - hence there is something of a shortage of rail capacity). But cross country trains are relatively slow relative to cross country trucking, so time sensitive stuff (e.g. perishable foodstuffs) goes by truck, while much of the test go by rail.
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Peterborough
Age: 68
Posts: 226
Yep we got it wrong.
Our tunnels a far too small for double decker pax trains, let alone double stacked containers.
The introduction of the big boxes caused havoc on Britain’s railways. There had to be a lot of track lowering in tunnels etc, and special wagons were designed with smaller wheels (FLA wagons), and wagons that had the containers sit in what looked like a bath tub, low slung between the regular sized bogies (KTA wagons).
On the plus side, our container trains can whizz along at 75mph.
Our tunnels a far too small for double decker pax trains, let alone double stacked containers.
The introduction of the big boxes caused havoc on Britain’s railways. There had to be a lot of track lowering in tunnels etc, and special wagons were designed with smaller wheels (FLA wagons), and wagons that had the containers sit in what looked like a bath tub, low slung between the regular sized bogies (KTA wagons).
On the plus side, our container trains can whizz along at 75mph.
Last edited by uffington sb; 21st Aug 2018 at 06:31. Reason: put wagon types in for the spotters.
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Great South East, tired and retired
Posts: 3,735
On many lines it is actually mandated that passenger trains must give way to freight.
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
Join Date: Jul 2000
Location: Peripatetic
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That’s the penalty you pay for being an early adopter.
On the other hand, inventing the railways and starting the industrial revolution did give us a bit of a hard start and early advantage.
On the other hand, inventing the railways and starting the industrial revolution did give us a bit of a hard start and early advantage.
I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Lincolnshire
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Posts: 16,756
Originally Posted by tdracer
. But cross country trains are relatively slow relative to cross country trucking, so time sensitive stuff (e.g. perishable foodstuffs) goes by truck, while much of the test go by rail.
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: CEH2 (Black Diamond, Alberta)
Posts: 5,906
Our tunnels a far too small for double decker pax trains, let alone double stacked containers.
The height of a double-stack car (or well car) is 20' 3".
how did they know, more than a century ago, to build all the bridges and tunnels high enough?
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: The Smaller Antipode
Age: 87
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looked to me more like a fast cycling speed.
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Southwater
Age: 71
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What must be remembered is that generally the first railways were built for transporting goods, not passengers. The much vaunted Great Central almost certainly lost money on every passenger train it ran, the profits came from the south Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire coal fields. As so often happens we in Britain invented something which the rest of the world improved upon. Railway loading gauges being a prime example.
Just to go off on a tangent a little. Though now retired when I used to attend receptions and the like with my late wife people used to ask me, "Are you in music"?
"No, I work on the railway".
"Oh. Do you have a model railway at home"?
"No, I have a real one to play with. It's much more fun except when it comes off the rails then it's a bit harder to get back on".
I used to wonder that if I said I was a 747 captain whether I'd be asked if I made model aeroplanes or if I said that I was a cruise liner captain I'd be asked if I made model ships.
Just to go off on a tangent a little. Though now retired when I used to attend receptions and the like with my late wife people used to ask me, "Are you in music"?
"No, I work on the railway".
"Oh. Do you have a model railway at home"?
"No, I have a real one to play with. It's much more fun except when it comes off the rails then it's a bit harder to get back on".
I used to wonder that if I said I was a 747 captain whether I'd be asked if I made model aeroplanes or if I said that I was a cruise liner captain I'd be asked if I made model ships.
Last edited by RedhillPhil; 21st Aug 2018 at 09:12. Reason: Additions.
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: The bar of the Frog and Peach
Posts: 77
20+ years ago camping somewhere north of Whistler (100 Mile House?) we got distracted from cooking supper by an impressively long container train with several locos at its head going round a bend. A few minutes later I saw another one. "Gosh" I thought, "those two are close together. Oh, wait I've seen those containers before!". It had gone round an enormous loop on the hillside opposite and I was still looking at the same train.
Impressively slow though.
Drive over Shap on the M6 sticking to the speed limit and you'll be overtaken by one of our container trains.
Impressively slow though.
Drive over Shap on the M6 sticking to the speed limit and you'll be overtaken by one of our container trains.
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Westnoreastsouth
Posts: 1,502
Yes we have seen some pretty impressive freight trains in the USA - I would have put their speed as 10-15mph through towns etc (perhaps a little faster out in the country ?)
On the smaller freight lines away from the main lines (ie inferior track maintenance) they probably 'cruise' at 5mph
On the smaller freight lines away from the main lines (ie inferior track maintenance) they probably 'cruise' at 5mph
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: River Thames & Surrey
Age: 73
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Originally Posted by longer ron
Yes we have seen some pretty impressive freight trains in the USA - I would have put their speed as 10-15mph through towns etc (perhaps a little faster out in the country ?)
On the smaller freight lines away from the main lines (ie inferior track maintenance) they probably 'cruise' at 5mph
On the smaller freight lines away from the main lines (ie inferior track maintenance) they probably 'cruise' at 5mph
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Cambridge, England, EU
Posts: 3,438
The slow speed does mean a saving on level crossing hardware - no need for gates or lights or anything, just a STOP sign. Stop, look, and if you can't see a train you've got minutes to get across.
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: US
Posts: 158
In the late 70’s, 19, not 18, boarded a train in Ottawa, bound for Calgary just because. I think we stopped at every railroad crossing, small town and single tree all the way across the prairies.
Upon first sight of the snow covered Rockies low on the horizon the thought crossed my mind that we were almost there, can’t be too much longer.
Boy, was I wrong.
That was the one and only train ride for the sake of doing it.
Peraps the Flat Earthers should go stand in the middle of Saskatchewan/Manitoba, it would make their day.
Upon first sight of the snow covered Rockies low on the horizon the thought crossed my mind that we were almost there, can’t be too much longer.
Boy, was I wrong.
That was the one and only train ride for the sake of doing it.
Peraps the Flat Earthers should go stand in the middle of Saskatchewan/Manitoba, it would make their day.
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: apogee
Age: 67
Posts: 69
Observing the curvature of the earth, outstanding in his field.
They say Bonneville Salt Flats are good for that as well. Usually much hotter tho'.
You build better aircraft and highway systems and railways do what they have to, to survive. In Canada, heavy freight.
There are still big shortcomings in rail operations, single tracking etc. and many communities are left wanting for service. Churchill for example.
I've spent far more time on trains in Britain than here and I'm only over occasionally.
They say Bonneville Salt Flats are good for that as well. Usually much hotter tho'.
You build better aircraft and highway systems and railways do what they have to, to survive. In Canada, heavy freight.
There are still big shortcomings in rail operations, single tracking etc. and many communities are left wanting for service. Churchill for example.
I've spent far more time on trains in Britain than here and I'm only over occasionally.
