thrill seekers

VINEYARD -- A bright yellow, 200-ton locomotive approached a Geneva Road crossing in Vineyard.

Engineer Steve Farley, of Salem, was at the controls keeping a watchful eye.

The railroad crossing arms were down, the crossing lights were blinking. The locomotive's air horn was roaring and its bell blared loudly.

Children inside a car that had stopped at the crossing waved at the engineer.

Suddenly, a small car swerved around the safety arms into the opposite lane and crossed the tracks.

Fortunately, the driver's gamble paid off. There was no collision.

Unfortunately for the driver, a police officer in an unmarked vehicle was waiting for such offenders on the other side of the tracks. The driver was given a traffic citation.

"Thrill seekers," Farley said of motorists who disregard traffic laws at railroad crossings. "That's what we call them."

Farley, who has worked on the railroad for 28 years, said he knows too well the result of drivers who take chances or do not pay attention at railroad crossings.

Monday and Tuesday, Farley was at the controls of a special train.

Troopers on the Train, a program sponsored by the Union Pacific Railroad Company and Operation Lifesaver, helps educate students, motorists, pedestrians and others about rail safety.

Officers from throughout the county rode in the locomotive's cab to witness motorists violating traffic regulations that put them in danger of being struck by a train.

The train traveled over several miles of Utah County railroad tracks, with officers calling in violators to others waiting to write citations at the crossings.

The awful result of a train hitting a vehicle becomes a haunting memory for the train's engineer, Farley said.

"I was coming back empty after delivering a load of coal to the IPP Plant near Delta about three and a half years ago," he said.

"They were a young high school couple, just engaged I think. They apparently didn't see me."

Farley wasn't sure what prevented the couple from hearing the train's air horn and bell, but the train slammed into the car, killing them both in an instant.

"They finally looked up just before I was on them," Farley said, saying he will never forget their faces at that moment.

"It's hard to see a young couple like that taken away just for not paying attention."

It's that absent-minded approach to railroad crossings that the program and law enforcement officers hope to curb.

Before the train had gone a mile Monday, it passed one crossing where the wooden crossing arm had come down atop a car hood.

"We didn't write her a citation. She said she had sneezed, and her car just crept forward a bit," said Lt. Scott Broussard, with the Union Pacific Police Department.

But he said about four citations were written Monday.

 

I wish the police would do that here in Grand Rapids.The shop where I work sets right at the sidewalk,and the crossing is blind to anybody approaching from the north until they are right on the tracks.

 

I worked at a company that had a loading dock for box cars that ran in the back between buildings. One night, the switcher cut loose, "kicking" a couple of fully loaded cars, that coasted across a driveway that was little used. Some guy backed his pickup out onto the track as the cars rolled up on him. He never saw nor heard them, he said, after they pushed him sideways for half a block. We heard them hit, and went to see what it was. He got out OK, but his truck was only good for going in circles after that!

 

The Long Island RR has had terrible accidents from vehicles going around crossings.
People don't realize that in some stations, when the train is in the station the gates stay down. (Mineola's station is a perfect example). And then since it is a commuter line, there are frequent trains on TWO tracks. They go around the gates past the stopped train only to be hit by another train that they never see. A train going 80-90 miles an hour.
This happens with commuters on foot too. In the morning, they are still asleep and are running around those gates to catch the train on the other side. The train that ends up killing them.......

 

"Braindead" or "Death Wish" sounds good to me on that one.

 

Watash, You said that the switch kicked a cut of cars across the driveway even though it was little used. Who got in trouble for that one sounds like a law suit to me for the railroad. I thought a driveway no matter how much it is used is suppose to have a flagger to protect the crossing. sounded like someone did an oops!

 

No law suit Jack.
The driveway was only a grade level access between two warehouses used during the day only, unless they had a car unloading or loading to them.

At night this special priviledge crossing was outlawed between 7:30pm and 7:30 am, during which hours it reverted to railroad property.

No flaging was required anywhere in the industrial park zone. Lots of people even parked their cars on the trackway during the day. There was street lights at each street crossing, and signs that warned to watch for free rolling railroad cars between those hours. Besides, there were through streets you were supposed to use if entering the park during train hours, that paralleled the tracks, that went around the dead end so trucks could move during the night too.

There was always the "Big Shot" who thought the whole world revolved around him that got his Caddy or Lincoln busted by taking a short cut! We loved it, because as mere employees, we had to go the long way round. Ever once in awhile, we would have to give some "poor soul" a ride out to a filling station to call a wrecker and a taxi! We really loved it!

 

So it sounds like he did the oopps! If it was reported back to railroad property at night.

 

Yeah, Jack, re-read my post, it was at night. That company usually ran a forklift back and forth through there during the day, but the guy had run his pickup over to the other building to do some work on it, and was coming back across to go home. The truck was not supposed to even be in either building. The wrecker only had to pull it about 15 feet to get to the next street, so was no problem to haul away. This was the same industrial district I told about in a previous post when a guy's car got smushed. The whole thing looks like two hair combs pushed together; the track lead is on one side of the district with side tracks going into every other row of buildings. The main street is on the other side of the district with streets going between (parallel) each track. All the buildings face the streets with their rear at the tracks. Its a neat layout, but has grown to a whole city down there now.

 

Anyone who's been around the RR for any length of time will have a long list of crashes and near misses that they've been involved in or heard about. I'll never understand how people can think they have a chance when they tangle with a train. I got involved in Operation Lifesaver after only 3 years out here because I saw so many crazy things in front of my windshield. Every time I do a presentation, I hope that I can get a few more folks to think a bit before they get out on the tracks. There's nothing I dread more than seeing a vehicle or person in front of me and knowing there's not much I can do about it except fill out the paperwork after it's all over.

 

Some of you real railroaders ever had problems with railfanners or people with them. I know a few guys on the railroad here in Galesburg they hate when Railroad Days come around because they aren't of what railfanners are going to do.

[ 31 October 2001: Message edited by: Jack Doran ]</p>

 

My training engineer used to caution me to seriously watch out for the 12 to 16 year old kids we would see walking along the tracks, (usually on their way to go fishing), because that age group seemed to like to play "dare you to hit me", or "watch the derail wreck" with us.

Most of his young life, he was fearful of hurting those kids, even getting sick to his stomache over it, but after he hit one, he lost all sympathy for them. I learned young from him.

They would step in the gauge and see how close we would get to them before they would jump out of the way. Sometimes they would lay spikes, and even a fishplate one time, on the rail head just to watch us run over it. Coins were OK, and nails, everyone did that.

He always made me slow down and blow a series of short whistle blasts until they moved. Then he would throw chunks of coal at them and open the cylinder cocks and give them a good steaming as we went by.

A couple of times a kid would try to step up onto the the front of the engine to ride if we slowed down too much, but my engineer would suddenly grab the Johnson Bar into center and the kid would fall off. It scared them bad enough that they ran on all fours sometimes! We never slowed down that much after that.

One time a kid stood there on my side grinning while I brought her to a complete stop. The engineer jumped off the fireman's side ran around and threw the kid off down the embankment. He told me next time don't stop, because the kid'll do it again if you do, so I didn't after that.

Some would throw ballast at us, and one shot his 22 rifle at us breaking a window on the fireman's side.

That kid was shot dead by another fireman later, and was good riddenance because he was a known trouble maker in the area, sometimes shooting at cars and trucks too. Got him with a 30-30 and he was found with his rifle in his hand.

My trainer was very stern about slowing down, because one time he had slowed down when several boys were in the gauge, and a stupid brat had waited til the last few feet before jumping. They all jumped, some with less feet to spare than others. When he could not see the brat anymore because of the boiler, he opened the throttle to get back on schedule thinking the idiot had jumped on the fireman's side.

The other kids stated that this kid's foot slipped on a tie, and he fell flat on the rail on the fireman's side, (who was shoveling coal at the time)so didn't see them, and the engine ran over the kid's chest just at the floating ribs, slowly mashing the kid in two of course.

The kid lived several minutes screaming and flailing his arms about, which caused that half of his body to work its way off into the weeds along the embankment where he later died. His legs also flopped around under the train getting cut up from muscle reactions, much the same as when you cut the head off a chicken, or removed a head on the Guillotine.

The engineer was not reprimanded, but it made him so mad that he would slow down to about twenty, and steam them good anytime he saw them along the track after that. I finally got pretty good at laying a long blast of steam at them too after some practise. It seemed they were too stupid to learn, because we scalded the same ones several times before they finally realised boiling hot water hurt!

Adults were more apt to be absent minded and drive or walk across as if we were supposed to stop for them!

The really maddening adults were the moms and dads who would stand as close as 10 feet to the rails with a toddler beside them to watch the Choo-Choo go by! We have to blow the whistle for every crossing, and it often scared the pee out of the little tykes, and they would run in fear.

Our problem was that those kiddies would just as well run across the tracks as away from them! The parent would sometimes catch the kid before we got him, sometimes not. People get all bent out of shape thinking it is our fault when they allow their kid to get squashed in front of them by our ugly old train. I don't think it ever entered their vacant mind to hold the kid's hand.

Yeah I do hate to see people die, but after so long a time, you lose sympathy for the stupid ones. The ones that hurt us were the old folks, or kidies trapped in their dad's car and couldn't have run anyway. I guess its like in a war, you get hardened to it after awhile.

 

Watash, that was incredible.
That was some of the best RR reading I have done in years.
Kudos.
I could not stop reading that to pay attention to my wife.
OUCH! OUCH!

 

I could not have imagined that. Let alone not be able to control the situation. And those kids give us railfanners a bad name.

I railfan alot here in Galesburg. I am guilty of going up to the tracks within about 10 ft of them. I hopefully one of the many that use thier head when it comes to this. But I have seen some stupid stuff from other railfanners are around. I just hope I am not one to see an accident. If I railfan I usually follow some safety tips. These are by no means fail safe for everybody to enjoy.

1. I usually railfan alone. I would rather be by myself and get myself away from the tracks than try to warn everyone in the group of an oncoming train. I usually railfan with a group if it is railroad days up here because everyone is usually aware of the train coming.(scanners)

2. Usually place place myself at signals where I can see them. I know if I have a green signal I usually have a train coming from the backside of me. Which I turn in that direction because that train is not to far away. This also depends on the signal territory though to. I try for CTC tracks.

3. I try to listen and have a scanner with me at all times. But there is always that chance you may not hear that radio chatter for a train. I usually here try to get about 5 miles from a hotbox detector for a train. That way if I hear the detector go off That train will be there usually will there within minutes.

But I try to play safe around them. And usually as the locomotive is going past. I give a wave to the crew so they now my intentions are friendly at least I hope they think that.

[ 01 November 2001: Message edited by: Jack Doran ]</p>

 

Jack, if you ever do see a wreck, quick take all the photos you can from all the angles you can before they run you off the area! Then leave and get out of the way!

Get double copies made at a one hour place, hide one each copy of the train photos, and offer the extra copies to the train crew. You may capture something that gets missed or moved that the wreck crew wouldn't see. Offer to give them your address and phone, they may want to ask questions or get more copies. (It wouldn't hurt to have some personal business cards handy to give out, as a show that you are on the up and up).

Then respectfully ask where would be a safe place to take some of the Big Hook (if they bring one), or the Sidewinders in action lifting the cars, engines and junk back on the iron, or out of the way to clear the line. Offer to give them copies of the photos, and get an address to deliver them to, and someone's name.

It wont hurt to ask. Sometimes, they don't want photos taken by "outsiders", (like at a passenger site), and again they might welcome the added photo coverage for their investigation. It all depends upon the RR.

Be sure to leave RR Property quickly if they ask, they wont take time to fool around with you.

Don't dress like a "Foaming Rail Fan", try to look more like a "professional photographer", and you will get farther with real railroad people, and keep in mind, that will be a very tense irratable time for all the crew, so don't get offended if they throw you off without even listening to what you want to ask. And for Your own sake, STAY OUT OF THEIR WAY!!

Once you meet someone, and they recognize you, you may just get to make a friend that will allow you to watch, and even share stories and photos with you later on. Nothing ventured, nothing gained and all that, see? Your age will help, and hopefully you wont have any children with you.

If you actually see the wreck happen, and no one else is around, you will have to use your own judgement as to whether to try to call 911 then help the crew, or just make the call and stay away, or get a long way away. That will have to be you're call. Be wise, but not fool hardy, it can be pretty bloody and heart rending sometimes.

I'll tell some more stories in another Forum, (Tales From the Cab) later on.

 

I won't mention where exactly this happened but this is a story a friend told me.
Oh, he's a bit younger than me and this probably happend 25 years ago.

He was standing on the outskirts of a yard in New York State and there was a stopped train in front of him.
Suddenly another train came along at about 15 mph, and slammed into the parked train in front of him.
Boxcars actually flew off the tracks and landed at his feet.
An old engineer climbed down from the engine, tossed a bottle into the woods, and walked over to him and handed him a wad of cash and said, "Ya didn't see nothin' kid!"
The engineer then climbed up the hill and went his merry way!
LOL.

 

Those are rarely talked about with "civilians' Bob.

Its like a retired Raider or Ranger, or Seal trying to put into words, an experience that you "feel" more than you can express in adequate words, if you even wanted to. Few people would understand, or even believe what it can be like anyway, so why bother, it just dredges up things you really have put to bed.

I have tried to express some things because maybe the knowledge might save a life, or educate someone. Old Marletter, Art, and I have debated about trying to tell some of the things that have happened, but since most of the members here who are vocal seem to be of the younger more tender set, we decided it would be taken as just a story, so wouldn't be taken to heart and pondered for the knowledge and advice.

There are more tears than fun to running trains in steam days anyway, when you get to looking back at it.

Yes it was a thrill, about like looking back on the last fire fight you were in and are still alive. Most of your buddies are gone now, so who is left that wants to know, or would understand where you are coming from, or even cares, those were the old days. You still wonder if you made the right decision, or maybe, what if....

Its all fun and different now, a computer or DCC makes all the decisions and you are just along for the ride. Even that will end soon, only the passengers will ride. WOW!

You see, I know what I'm talking about, and probably the New York Firemen and Police could understand, but hardly any of you (that I know of) CAN understand. We don't have to say anything, we can just sit or have a beer or coffee, and a look can tell it all. See, you can't get the picture, because I really don't know how to tell it to you.

Maybe I'll try to tell about Shaw's Cut someday, there are a couple of guys who would get more out of it than just a story about a train.