Railroad Forums
Tadman wrote:Perhaps this will lend a bit of perspective. About 25 years ago, there was an article about C&NW police in Trains Mag. There were 9 police officers for the entire C&NW system. Four of them patrolled the boones, four the passenger system (IE metra CNW N/NW/W), and one chief. The story was good, detailing how the two premier concerns were passenger safety and inner-city theft issues. That said, it was sobering to see how few cops were allocated to such a big railroad.According to UP's website the head count is at about 175
The take-away here is that it doesn't surprise one to see the local cops called in to provide support if UP or any class I has a similar police-to-mileage ratio. It's hard enough for a municipal department to cover their ground if they're well-staffed, let alone 9 guys cover and entire railroad. I don't think 9 guys could accurately cover Ogilvie Station, let alone the metro area.
Food for thought.
wilmette2008 wrote:Could any one picture if a RR Police department was featured on cops?It would be interesting. Too many people think of RR Police as mall cop private security instead of as real police officers. Seeing a day in their lives may help clear up that impression.
wilmette2008 wrote:Why would you say that people outside of the railroad/rail fan community don't know about the Railroad Police?Because it is true. We have enough people within the "fan" community who don't consider railroad police to be real police. It is easy to see them as private security level enforcers. If "fans" can make that mistake why not the general public?
wilmette2008 wrote:Ok, but what how come the general public doesn't even know that the RR Police exist?The grammar police exist.
wilmette2008 wrote:Could any one picture if a RR Police department was featured on cops?Well, it kinda happened. Was watching one episode where they were working with BNSF police on a drunk who got his stolen truck stuck on the Tracks. They even showed the officer’s name and listed his department correctly as BNSF Railway police.
wilmette2008 wrote:Would this guy be a security guard or a RR cop? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ecoqc1kAvI" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;He identified himself as railroad police. Never forget the police.