Cost Issues in the Rail Freight Operating Processes

What about the capacity research in the yards?

According to my knowledge the required number of the terminal tracks depends upon the inbound and outbound freight train flow which the terminal is about to process and handle for unit time. This does not include only the arrivals and departures of freight trains but also their dwell times on the terminal tracks. These dwell times depends on the shunting units in the terminal.

In reality when capacity research is needed, one should consider the arrival rate and the departure rate of the inbound and outbound traffic flow. There may have “rush-hours”, in which the arrival rate exceeds the departure rate of freight trains. In such a case congestions occur and a terminal is blocked. To avoid such a situation the terminal must be equipped with so - called “buffer” areas.

How is treated this subject in US?

What I have seen done in the past here under Conrail with an over flow of traffic they used to pass the trains on to the next yard or sent them on to controled sideings and let the runthews move. leaveing crews a short brake. At the most part Conrail was famous for droping long strands of cars such as auto racks, empty splin cars, stack cars, and coal cars off on controled sideings for days even months at a time to keep yards open.
Stack trains keeped moveing and only stoped in yards long enough to drop trailers and containors. Only 2-8 trains carrying mixed fraght would start in one yard and end in one yard with only 2 or 3 stops along the way. Anouther thing that used to happen under Conrail was this at any one time between 6a.m. and 2p.m. there could be at leased 17-30 trains running at one time. After 2p.m. the railroad would shut down for about an hour or two then a large number of trains would start moveing again. Over all Conrail would run about 60+ trains a day with a few extras and some late afternoon locals. Saterdays and Sundays would be counted as slow days all of your leased/runthrew power would run back west a lot of extras would also run this would also include the demi trains (High and Wide) special train moves which keeped moveing nonstop only to swap crews.
Slow Trains with low priority would be asked to stop as well where ever they were local crews out working the line would also get held up for hours to let traffic clear up befor moveing again. As funny as it was if a train with 2 working locomotives and one that was dead or dieing would be ordered to keep moveing even if it was about to catch fire or get as far as the next yard or signal then stop.

if you do not mind my asking but could you tell me more about you?

SRS125 wrote: The Union Pacific Railroad would be the biggest railroad with all of the problums listed above with them buying the Southern Pacific, C&NW, and D&RGW, with in 3 months apart of each outher. The railroad has been plaged with crew shortages to run trains, an over flow of unnessary UPS traffic being the major problum overflowing there entire net work of traffic on the railroad. Many lower class trains sit for days or weeks at a time befor locomtives or crews are found to run them. This is a current problum that needs to be fixed.

Huh? What are you talking? The SP and DRG&W were the same railroad and the UP most certainly did not purchase the C&NW and the SP within 3 months of each. And the problems the UP experienced with the acquisition of those railroads were almost completely the result of UPs arrogance in trying to bend those railroads to fit the UP way rather than studying them, seeing what was already working and why, and then adapting them and integrating them into the rest of the system. And those subjects are old and water under the bridge and long since resolved.

Crew shortage is problem that all Class I railroads are currently facing, although not necessarily to the degree the UP is, because of the explosion of rail traffic business. The current prevailing railroad management mindset appears to continue to be that they can cut their way to higher profits rather than reinvesting in and expanding the capacity of their rail systems.

I was born in the states and lived here in the states till I was 12 befor a temporary move to russia for awhile to continue with helping in serching
out our family history to go thew books and birth records to find out where my great gandfather came from. Befor comeing back to the states I got a lot of vary rare military idems from there as well befor the collapse of the USSR. I moved about some more between the states and Canada befor a final move back to New York by age 15 where I have stayed sents then.
I worked for a number of companys working in melt shops melting aluminum slabs for railcars, building wire harnece assemblies, and light bulbs, forestry managment, and concrete work. I also put in a short time with Sperry Rail Service doing jobs in the norheastern part of the U.S. and Canada. It was nice to travel but all good things come to an end after geting hurt. I enjoyed my time traveling. I made many friends, saw a lot of things and changes, I managed to take an intrest in outher hobbys I do model building: trains and ships, collecting antiques, managed a monsterous collection of foreign currency bank notes, coins, and stamps. I have been asked to do a few show and tell type lectres for a few of my former history teachers that I had in school but have not done anything yet.
Currentley today I work part time as a meat and sea food sales men at a local grocery store. I'm still active in model building and collecting coins and bank notes, I also work part time as a photogher snapeing pics of railcars and locomtive for the model railroad industry. I have submitted well over 800,000 prints over an 8 year span not counting 100 home videos on VHSC video tapes many never seen by the public.

and did you discaver the origin of your family, where did they come from?

It is interesting to me, because I am Blgarian! Probably you know that we bulgarias came from Siberian region and settled down in the Balcans, during the 6-th century! Bulgaria is established as a country since 681 year after a few battles and agreements with the Visantia Empire, Slav and other local tribes ...

We know that he was born to a high ranking Russian family in the former country of Transalvaina. He was raised in Southern Russia and traveled about europe in his younger days. He spoke Russian, High German, Dutch, and Belgen. Things are still a little fuzzy still. We do know that he served as a causack for France Ferdanan of the Austro-Ottaman Empire befor he moved to Canada about 1-2 years befor the first world war.

He set up shop and self taught him self the art of black smithing. He later was hired out by the Canadian Pacific Railroad as a black smith. In the winter he worked the lumber colonys as a filer sharpening axes and saw blades. In 1920 he started a boat shop building ceader boats. The business is still in operation today.

I have a few bank notes from Balgaria in my collection one from 1951 and the outher is from 1991.

I see, ...

Which the Bulgarian banks are, most likely one of them to be "DSK"!??

Are you running the business that you mentioned "a boat shop building ceader boats", what is it exactly about?

I don't run the boat shop My uncles and some of my cousins are runing the shop I make my rounds once a year for vactions in the area mostley visit while doing a weeks worth of rail faning in the area. I'm not sure what dsk means on the bank notes I know that the 1991 note is a 20 leva and the note from 1951 is 50 leva this one is intresting with the water mark being a hammer and sickle design. I'm vary much rusty at speeking anything from my european traveling I do pick up and remeber a few words fom time to time but not much seems like every country has redone there aphlabets and so forth.

How many languages do you speak?

Do you speak Russian? You know that Bulgarian and Russian lenguages have got something in common?

By the way, there are govenmental agrеements between Bulgarian and Russian Governments for exhange of scientific workars in different feilds. I am thinking, probably one day when I finish in Lisbon, to go to investigate Rail Yards in Russia! Just plans, who knows what s coming up?

I speek English, and some basic russian I would know enough to get my self something to eat, and directions. Reading it and placement of hard and soft letter placement thow me off on occation its been almost 14 years sents I have spoken anything. I do use an on line tranlater off of anouther web page on the computer to type and send messages when need be. I do have the computer codes as well to put them up on the computer.

I saw the common letters used between the Russian and Bulgarian alphabets its vary intresting.

Have you been working in any Univercity in US?

HOw did you strart workinhg with RailRoad Operations?

I'm working on relearning russian on my own I picked up a few books at the book store and also have a few web pages book marked as well.

I started with Sperry Railservice when I was 19 years old I put in an application and they called me the day my application arrived with in 1 1/2 weeks I was working for the company. They liked what I had to offer becuse I had spent 3 years of schooling takeing Heavey Equipment Repair and Operation. I was with the company for a short while befor hurting my self on the job. We were working a night as it wold happen we stoped the car and as proceder we have to hand scan the rail to double check things out as I was walking the along ROW my foot went into a rabbit hole I messed my ankle up rilly bad I have never been able to recover from that accdent.