operating procedures on the BNSF

question - how come the bn is allowed to ignore the rule that if a train is in the station no other train can pull in. Not that i think they should follow this rule, justing wondering why they dont because i read the it was a national operating procedure.

That's up to each railroad. Not a federal rule.

RI trains 614 (inbound) and 503 (outbound) semi-frequently meet at 95th St on the Beverly district. I have seen many instances of one pulling in while the other is still in the station - much to the chagrin of tardy commuters who didn't make it across the tracks to the correct side on time . . .

Milwaukee North trains also frequently serve a station at the same time in opposite directions. To me this seems safer at stations with pedestrian grade crossings since each train blocks the crossings, thus preventing pedestrians from crossing in front of the other train. Trains will also sometimes hold at a station for 30-60 seconds if another train is approaching on the other track (in the same or opposite direction) in order to keep pedestrians from starting across the tracks with a train apprroaching.

(I don't entirely understand the logic of the "hold out rule" since this specifically creates a period of time while pedestrians are on the tracks after one train departs, leaving the opportunity for some to try to beat the second-arriving train once it begins moving into the station to make its stop.)

i see, i swear i heard that it was a federal rule. i too think its dumb. It always made more sense to me to just have the other train pull in while the crossing is blocked

meh wrote:I don't entirely understand the logic of the "hold out rule" since this specifically creates a period of time while pedestrians are on the tracks after one train departs, leaving the opportunity for some to try to beat the second-arriving train once it begins moving into the station to make its stop.

I have been thinking the exact same thing for a long time. It frequently happens on RI, the first thing that comes to mind is at Tinley Park - Oak Park Ave.

Train #'s 411 & 420 will meet at Oak Park Ave. at least 4 times a week. #411 will usually be there first with its outbound rush hour train, while #420 creeps toward the station at about 5-10mph. Once #411 starts to leave, the engineer of #420 will increase the throttle to pull into the station, blowing the horn until coming to the grade crossing. Yet, commuters still walk in front of the train at a crosswalk and the grade crossing.

Oak Park Ave. is one of the few stations on RI with a fence between the two mains. (Commuters decided to knock down the fence when it was new 2 years ago, figuring it would take too much effort to walk all the way to a grade crossing or the crosswalk.) If #420 pulled into Oak Park Ave. while #411 was still at the station, there would be no way for a commuter to walk in front of the train.

On UP's Geneva sub, several midday trains in both directions are scheduled to arrive at College Ave. at either precisely the same time, or within 1-2 minutes of each other. They coordinate their movements so as to not arrive there simultaneously, so normally, the engineer on the EB will initially contact the WB somewhere between Winfield and Wheaton. Most of the time, they'll wind up passing each other between College Ave and Wheaton, or if there's a minor delay to one, the other will remain stopped until the delayed train is ready to roll.

An exception to this rule seems to apply just to trains 13 and 26, scheduled to arrive at Wheaton at 7:09 and 7:10, respectively.
Unless one is delayed, they will radio each other's location several minutes in advance, so that the WB gets into the station first, about 30 seconds before the EB pulls in. It's actually pretty effective, because the WB train in station at that time acts as a physical barrier against anyone wishing to cross the tracks, and it especially removes the temptation of doing something stupid (and illegal) to those late-running commuters that may have been thinking of making a last-minute dash for the EB, so instead, they'll just have to wait for the next one.

at Elmhurst the outbound will pull into the station and the eastbound will stop for like a minute, then blow the horn. It then pulls into the station while the outbound is unloading

How many of the stations does Metra have which are set up for two trains (or three) to operate in there at one time safely?

All of em on the BNSF line. There's none of the "no two trains in the station at one time." It happens at least 5 times during rush hour. Yesterday, I even saw two trains in the station both heading west at the same time. The second train left the station before the first train's cab car cleared the platform.

Joe wrote:Yesterday, I even saw two trains in the station both heading west at the same time. The second train left the station before the first train's cab car cleared the platform.

This happens quite often at Naperville and Route 59. Train #1267, the 5:22 express to Naperville and Route 59 unloads its passengers on the south platforms of both stations. As #1267 pulls into Naperville, train #1253, a local will come in and unload on the north platform. Then at Route 59, train #1261 will pull in and unload on the north as #1267 unloads on the south.