On a yard Job,the risk to passengers is nil according to date nail.
Not true and date nail exposes his lack of knowledge on railroading. On any yard Job on the LIRR there are reverse moves from yards to the station regularly made. A reverse move means the Engineer stays on one end and the Conductor on the other, and both are involed in the actual movement of the train. The Engineer has his hand on the throttle on one end, and The Conductor Controls the move on the rear end of the train while backing it up.
This is done in virtualy all yards.
West side Yard, there are moves made on the lead tracks to the station, and the crews regularly switch through the station, and interact with Passenger trains.
Blow a switch or a signal and there will be injuries.
Ditto for Jamaica, from Johnson ave to D yard, the yard crews regularly cross over in front of passenger trains with the Conductor on one end and the Engineer on the other.
Also The drill crews in Brooklyn are required to bring trains from the station to VD yard , and back.
Each Yard Job has switching limits which include main track, and crossing over in front of Passenger trains.
I would even go so far to say the risk might be greater for Yard crews, because yard crews regularly back trans through interlockings on main track while the normal passenger crew rarely does that..
If a tired Engineer or Conductor blew a switch or signal at some of these locations, especially Jamaica, there could be fatalities.
I remember working the YE jobs at Jamaica, making a move from Johnson ave to yard D, and backing the train into yard D.( or Yard D to Johnson)
I would come upon a stop signal in the interlocking and of course stop the train.
I remember watching as Passenger trains would go by, and the seriousness of "keeping my head in the game". If I had blown that signal I would have run into the side of that passenger train and ripped it open like a tin can. I understood then the seriousness of the Job, and how peoples lives were at stake, it was no joke.
Thats why conductors are Qualified, and also subject to random drug tests.
In addition, most of us get along very well on the RR, we work together, eat together, sleep on equipment together, we spend more time with our co-workers then our families. We go to each others weddings and funerals. We are lifetime friends, as proven by the various retirement functions every month.
Sure we joke around and call each other bluebelllys or hoggers, but its all in fun.
Except for occasional bluster, there are no craft wars on the LIRR, there should not be any here either.