About the Author J. D. Santucci (a.k.a. "Tuch") began his railroading career in 1978 as a trainman on the Missouri Pacific. After a round of lay-offs in 1985, Tuch embarked on a railroad odyssey, working in many different situations for different roads. This column tries to explain some of the nuts and bolts of the job and also demonstrates what we have to deal with on a regular basis within and without the industry. Tuch currently works through freights out of Chicago for Canadian National/Illinois Central. ©1999, 2003-2007 JD Santucci. Logo ©2002 The Railroad Network. By J.D. Santucci

May 10, 2005
I was thinking of calling today's lesson "No Train is an Island" but that was even too cheesy for me. So this will have to do. But first, a few announcements from our sponsor.

I have returned back to the road working trains 332 and 331 between Glenn Yard and Champaign. This of course, means I am gone a great deal again. It also does actually give me more time to write as I lay around in the hotel. Hopefully this will give more the chance to have a revised manuscript ready for the publisher sooner. No, the book won't get out any sooner, but I might have my end of the deal ready in better shape. We can only hope. This also means that I will become even more dreadfully behind in my correspondence than I am right now. So if you send me some mail and I it seems like I am never going to respond, just hold out hope that I will get to you before year's end.

A quick note about my job assignment, we usually go out of Glenn in the morning around 0700 as 332. We come back the next day out of Champaign 1100 or so as 331. More often than not we have UP power as these trains are run-throughs with them

As most people are sitting waiting at a railroad crossing waiting for a train to pass do they give much thought to what it takes for that train to actually become that train? Not very likely. They'll usually observe locomotives, cars and a marker passing, perhaps read some of the graffiti on the sides of some of the rolling stock and possibly mull over the delay this train is causing them, but likely little else. It is quite possible that a few expletives may also be uttered while contemplating the delay the have encountered. But the likelihood of their pondering over what went into the making up of that train is at best, remote.

Trains don't just happen; they are operated for a reason. And contrary to what at least one railfan oriented magazine leads you to believe it is not for that sake of just playing railroad. Train movements occur to move commodities from here to there in a timely and efficient manner. For the most part, trains are not just a cluster of cars randomly thrown together and mindlessly operated from point A to point B. Notice I said for the most part and not always. There is a reason and purpose for each train operated and the cars that are moving in them. The cars moving in each train must be sorted and classified and then placed into the trains based upon their final destination. Each car has come from somewhere and is now en route to somewhere, somewhere in particular as opposed to just anywhere.

Today's lesson will focus on how a train comes to be, and how trains can and do depend upon other trains and other assignments.

For those that participate in the hobby of model railroading or even for those that just set up the old Lionel around the Christmas tree every year, you know that by simply setting cars onto or removing them from the track is how you can build your train. In the real world, cars are always on the rail. Well, except for derailments, normally always on the rail. There are cars someplace at all times on the railroad. We don't have a big hand that can simply remove them or place them into the desired locations or simply remove them to get them out of our way when those cars are not required. What is critical to expediting train movements is getting said cars into the right spot at the right time. Switching assignments are usually given the task of "building" trains in the various yards.

Cars are not randomly placed into trains; they are there for a reason. Every train has a specified route and designated final terminal. While you may see a train heading east, west, north or south, that train is heading for someplace; someplace specific and not just down the road. And all the cars moving on that train are also heading for specific locations as well. While most folks, even some railroaders don't give it much thought, every single car in a particular train originated someplace and will terminate someplace else. Each car represents the needs of a customer and will be placed at that customer's particular destination. Now in the case of say a unit coal train, the entire train as opposed to a single car or perhaps a block of cars is placed at a shipper's designated track. Nonetheless, every car is going somewhere and likewise, has come from somewhere.

A boxcar loaded with automobile engines in Buffalo is heading towards an assembly plant in say, Kansas City. Petrochemicals produced in Louisiana are shipped in tank cars to a customer in Chicago that will use them to produce consumable products. These products will then have to be shipped to still other locations nation or even worldwide to reach the markets of consumers ready to purchase and use them. Or flour produced in Minnesota may be shipped in covered hoppers to a distributor in Ohio where it will be transloaded into trucks for delivery to customers away from rail lines.

Gee, this sounds so deep.

Accomplishing such a feat is no simple task. There is a great deal going on behind the scenes that the average person will never observe. I will eventually do a piece on just that, the behind the scenes support that makes the movement of cars work. In fact, I have already begun such a lesson. Now I will just need to acquire some time in order to complete it. Perhaps I can order some just as a customer orders cars. The finished product of the unobserved support team results in switch lists and work orders issued to and used by the Conductors and Brakemen on switchers and industry assignments.

Now with lists in hand, how do we get there from here?

We are going to study three different particular assignments to see how railroading can truly be a team sport, perhaps a tag team sport of sort, even though it may not appear as such. While the crew of each assignment is a team, they are actually part of a much greater team. I know I am staring to sound like spin from the PR department. In reality though, when you thoroughly examine it, railroading is truly a team activity. We just don't have to wear matching uniforms with numbers on our backs. While we railroaders may often refer to the place as the nut house or prison, the management hasn't subscribed to the idea of us wearing such attire like the patients or convicts wear; at least yet anyway. But they do have us all wearing those matching high visibility vests that make us better targets to snipers so that is a start.

So let's begin our lesson with Job 8. Job 8 is officially known as R93791. Once upon a time in IC and ICG days this assignment was actually RGL08. With the CN merger came their operating system and job symbols. Job 8's function is twofold; build the Millsdale Turn train and switch industries. Each Monday through Friday Job 8 begins their tour of duty at 1000 hours at Canadian National's Glenn Yard. They gather up cars that were switched by other switch jobs at Glenn Yard. Trains such as 331, 336, 391, R940 and the Belt Railway of Chicago's 1830 Transfer bring cars into Glenn Yard that are then switched out and classified by such assignments as Job 5, 16 and 24. These inbound trains include cars for the Millsdale Turn, Oil Job and industries that Job 8 serves. Job 8 will pull these cars out of Glenn and switch and block them up during the course of their day.

Job 8 pulls all of the cars out of Glenn and up into D Yard. D Yard is located just east (compass) or north (timetable) of Glenn. They will reclassify some of these cars for the Millsdale Turn into proper station order. The rest of the cars will be switched into the five tracks in D Yard either for brief storage or for the industries served by Job 8. We hold some cars for the industries (for a fee) on a short term basis until they request them into their facilities. When the customers order such cars Job 8 will dig those cars out of the tracks they are being held and add them to the Millsdale Turn or take them down with them to deliver them to the industries they will switch later in their day.

After completing the building of that day's Millsdale Turn, Job 8 will then head down to "the Prairie" and service industries located there. The Prairie is the unofficial name for an industrial region located south (compass) of Glenn Yard. Job 8 will switch the industries CN services as required. Some industries are switched five days per week, others several days per week and still others maybe once a week or so. Rail service is generally based upon how fast these industries will need materials needed to produce the products they manufacture or load outbound cars with finished product.

While Job 8 does their industry work, Car Inspectors from Glenn will come out to D Yard and work up the outbound Millsdale Turn train and prepare it for its air test. The engines for the Millsdale usually come off the inbound Oil Job in the late afternoon. More on the Oil Job in just a bit. Once the engines are added, the air is made, the cars are charged and then the Car Inspectors will perform the initial terminal air brake test on the train. By the time the Millsdale crew comes on duty at 2000 hours, the train should be ready to go, unless there is a bad ordered car that has to be kicked out of the train first.

The Millsdale Turn, nicknamed for the station in which it makes it final stop and then turns back from has the official full name of R95491. There are five separate blocks of cars within the Millsdale train. There used to be an additional block for a steel mill, but that plant to which the cars of this block were destined has shut down. Four of the blocks are actually cars that the Millsdale carries will be handled by yet a third job known as the Oil Job. These blocks are set out by the Millsdale at different stations along the way as they wend their way towards Millsdale; Willow Springs, Lambert and two different locations in Lemont. The second Lemont block I'll refer to as the south Lemont block. Within this south Lemont block is one, two or three sub blocks. There are three separate industries located here and depending upon which industries have ordered cars will determine how many of these sub blocks are included in this block on a day to day basis. And as an added twist, Job 8 will line up the cars for one particular industry in the exact order in which they have been requested for spotting. This allows for more efficient switching of this industry by the Millsdale.

On rare occasion, there will be cars set out at Romeoville siding or Lockport for medium to long term storage to be retrieved at a later date. This hasn't happened in awhile, but does occur from time to time.

After the final set out is performed at Lemont, the Millsdale will then head on to Joliet. At Joliet the rails of the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe (former Santa Fe) are accessed. CN has perpetual trackage rights on the BNSF to reach a plant in Millsdale, which is about 8 miles southwest (compass) or west (BNSF timetable) of Joliet. There is a factory that produces hair care products at Millsdale for which the CN provides rail service. BNSF does not service this plant at all. This makes for an unusual operation; the plant is on the BNSF but captive to the CN for rail service.

At one time, what is now BNSF track two was actually owned by the Gulf, Mobile & Ohio Railroad between Pequot (Coal City, IL) and Plaines which is just southwest of Joliet. It was operated jointly by both the GM&O and Santa Fe. This track was sold by GM&O successor Illinois Central Gulf to the Santa Fe in the mid 1980's. As part of the deal, ICG and its successor CN were given perpetual trackage rights on the line allowing them to reach and serve the plant located at Millsdale.

Until the BNSF built and opened the Logistics Park intermodal facility at the site of the old Joliet Arsenal a few years ago, CN and ICG trains used BNSF (ATSF prior to the merger) track two between either Plaines or Joliet Union Depot (known as UD) to make the trip to and from Millsdale. With the opening of Logistics Park, BNSF added centralized traffic control (CTC) to both main tracks between UD and Pequot. And at the west end of the old Millsdale siding, a new control point with crossovers between the main tracks was placed into service. This upgrade has provided for greater train dispatching flexibility for the BNSF. Now the Millsdale Turn can use either track in either direction between UD and Millsdale which is called CP460. This has significantly improved the expediting of this train over years past. Previously, the Millsdale would have to wait for any and all eastbound trains on track two within fifty miles of Joliet to pass before being allowed to head west.

The Millsdale will head out to its namesake turnaround location, perform their work and when the BNSF lets them back out, head back towards UD and home rails. They will stop at the south Lemont station and time permitting work industries there. Depending upon the time of the morning, they may just start the industry work here or complete it all. They are relieved by the Oil Job around 0600. If the work is not completed when the Oil Job arrives, they will take over and complete this switching.

The Oil Job (R93591) derives its name from the oil and chemical industries it serves. On duty at 0500, the Oil Job is taxied out to wherever the Millsdale is located and takes over the train. The train now assumes the Oil Job's 935 symbol. The Millsdale crew is taxied back to Glenn to tie up.

All of the cars the Millsdale has set out along its journey south the evening previous now come under the charge of the Oil Job. All of these cars will be placed at the industries as requested per the work orders the Oil Job carries with them. Once the Oil Job completes their work, they will take all of the cars they received from the Millsdale and all of the cars they have pulled from the industries they served and return to Glenn Yard. Still later, one of the switchers at Glenn will sort these cars out placing them on outbound trains sending them to still other destinations where they will eventually be spotted for loading or emptying at other industries.

So as you can clearly see, to every train there is a car, to every car there is a station, to every station there is a reason; "Turn, Turn, Turn."

And so it goes.

Tuch

Hot Times on the High Iron and the HTOTHI initials, ©2005 by JD Santucci.