Speed Restriction on B&A between Worcester and Boston?

cross posted from the MBTA forum:

On another list, a geometry car was spotted in Ashland MA today (Halloween). Then this evening, there were posted reports of commuter rail delays due to speed restrictions. Funny coincidence? Or is there a problem on the line? Is my commute going to be slow all week (or longer)?

Dave

This is what might be called circumstantial evidence. Geometry car runs, and restrictions appear. But, of course, that's why they run the Geometry car: to find the bad spots.

No way to tell the duration of the restrictions without knowing what the defects are, how big they are, and what it will take to fix them. And, no, I don't have that information.

DAW

dbperry wrote:cross posted from the MBTA forum:

On another list, a geometry car was spotted in Ashland MA today (Halloween). Then this evening, there were posted reports of commuter rail delays due to speed restrictions. Funny coincidence? Or is there a problem on the line? Is my commute going to be slow all week (or longer)?

Dave

They run a Geometry train over the B&A and some of the branches about once a year, and as 130MM stated, it's purpose is to find defects. Now, how long it takes for the speed restrictions to disappear is a different story. For exmple, the Framingham Secondary has had a 10mph "Temporary Speed Restriction" on it for close to 2 years now. Uggh.

In addition to the mention over on the MBTA forum about a Sperry car, Sperry car # 146 was in Boston doing the main-line between Boston & Pvd. last week.

Right, I'm still just guessing (or seeing the circumstantial evidence) that commuter rail delays seem to have appeared after a geometry train was spotted. Can anyone confirm that an actual temporary speed restriction has been issued for any where between Cove and CP 45 on track 1 or 2 of the B&A mainline?

By the way, the geometry train was under the Mass Pike near the Grand Junction - just west of CP 3 - facing west this morning at 8:30 AM when I passed it on my (delayed) inbound commute. It is the two CSX 'business cars' with 2 GP40-2's.

Dave

Why Geeps? Why not their FP40's #9998 or #9999?

doesn't CSX use those engines for their buisness trains?

The geometry train is still in the exact same spot as of 8:30 AM 11/2/06.

And the 5-10 minute delays have been every day since they started.

MBTA> yes, however would it not look nicer than 2 regular Geeps?

dbperry> hey, if you can take a pic for us.... it would be awesome to see.

Looks aren't important, as long as the work gets done. It would have been the 6025 alone, but since it is not equipped with cab signals the 6235 was added @ Selkirk. There was a new 30mph restriction between MP 9 & 10, I believe, on the Dispatcher Bulletin last night, as well as a few other new ones. I don't think that the Geometry has operated east of CP-3 to Cove yet as only a few conductor's are qualified east of CP-3 to Amtrak.

CSX Conductor wrote:There was a new 30mph restriction between MP 9 & 10, I believe,

I knew it! I had been trying to 'feel' if the train slowed down at all in strange places, and just today I finally thought we were passing CP 11 at a reduced speed.

Now the big question is: who do I have to bribe to get a MOW train or work crew out there so I don't keep losing 10 minutes each commute?

Engineer James wrote:dbperry> hey, if you can take a pic for us.... it would be awesome to see.

No picture possible, since I pass it at a distance of 3 feet traveling at about 30 mph I don't know the exact car numbers of the train in my neighborhood - I'll try and see. But this is what it looks like:

http://massroads.com/image.php?subject= ... n_20040326

Just imagine another ugly GP40-2 in front, and imagine it sitting under an ugly highway overpass.

Here is a close-up of a similar (or maybe the same) car:

http://www.alabamarailfan.com/cgi-bin/d ... atid=image


Dave

Well, I just really think they should use the Geeps for road service, and the 4 FP40's they have, they could use 1 to pull the geometry train. maybe to some that would be the right combo.

Engineer James wrote:Why Geeps? Why not their FP40's #9998 or #9999?

The former Amtrak units are for their business trains...their "varnish," their display stuff. The geometry trains use whatever they can scare up. In my neck of the woods, the geometry train is generally pulled with an old GE B-26 or even yard GPs or SDs.

Nobody CARES what the stuff looks like, even less so on CSX then on other lines. The geometry train is, in the end, a work train.

The Geometry train went west to Selkirk yesterday late morning and was showing in the computer as running down the east side of the Hudson River on the Hudson Line today between Selkirk & Poughkeepsie.

As for "ugly" GP's, it looked like both units were in the newer "Dark Future" paint.

CSX> really? well ok, I could see newer painted Geep would work.

I also forget that CSX still has a few SD's... maybe slap some Dark Future on them and make em look nice. But a B-26? man I haven't seen one of those on the rails here in I can't tell you when.

conrail_engineer wrote:
Nobody CARES what the stuff looks like, even less so on CSX then on other lines. The geometry train is, in the end, a work train.

CSX obviously has their priorities all screwed up....isn't their primary purpose to present attractive looking consists for railfans to photograph? isn't that how they choose what power to put in front?

Now that my tongue is out of my cheek, it is actually surprising how clean well painted they keep the geometry train cars...every time I have seen them, they look pretty good. Are they as nice inside?