Electrified industrial switching

A question has come up resulting from a topic in the Long Island forum: Did any railroad other than the Long Island, not counting Interurbans, use electric locomotives for switching industrial sidings? (There's an interesting thread just now on the Port Washington branch showing pre-WWII photos of industrial sidings with third rail--no doubt employees of those industries were well acquainted with the hazard.)

Believe both the PRR and the New Haven did switch online customers with electric power,most likely with "reacher" cars,if needed.
West 30th Street Branch of the NY Central was 3rd rail powered but used "Tri-Powered" locos switching customers,
till diesel switchers arrived.

Many New Haven industrial sidings were electrified, but the power would only be activated when
the conductor or brakeman would operate a "knife" switch to turn it on. Thus power wasn't
being wasted when not in use.

ExNYC63 wrote:Thus power wasn't
being wasted when not in use.

That's not how electricity works. The knife switch (or other form of disconnection) was probably for safety of those around the rails more than anything. Power is only "used" when there's a complete circuit created, in this case by the locomotive. If there's no "load" there, turning the switch offmwouldn't use any more or less power than leaving the switch on. Energizing a third rail with no load "wastes" no power.

There was a railroad out in the Midway district of the Twin Cities called the Central Warehouse Company which used electric switching, but I don't know how long it lasted. (If there's any track left, it's under the control of the Minnesota Commercial now.)

The Iowa Traction is the classic example of an interurban becoming an industrial railroad.

Also, this probably isn't in your wheelhouse, but the Chicago Tunnel Company is really, really interesting.

ExCon90 wrote:A question has come up resulting from a topic in the Long Island forum: Did any railroad other than the Long Island, not counting Interurbans, use electric locomotives for switching industrial sidings? (There's an interesting thread just now on the Port Washington branch showing pre-WWII photos of industrial sidings with third rail--no doubt employees of those industries were well acquainted with the hazard.)

WALLABOUT TERMINAL
Williamsburg, Brooklyn

DELAWARE, LACKAWANNA & WESTERN RAILROAD

http://members.trainweb.com/bedt/indloc ... tterm.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

SOUTH BROOKLYN RAILWAY
Sunset Park, Greenwood, Kensington, Parkville, Gravesend, Coney Island, Bedford, Brooklyn

http://members.trainweb.com/bedt/indloco/sbr.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Scroll down to the locomotive pictures.

Joe

Thanks for digging those out--I didn't think of Brooklyn.

Depending upon how you classify them various Iron Ore and Copper mines would use electric locomotives would make movements from the mine to the crusher and then to places like a concentrator.

Niagara Junction.

the iowa traction railway uses all electric locos, for all of their operations. this includes all industrial switching, and interchange with bnsf and uprr. it should be the last electric freight railroad, in the u.s.

Train Detainer wrote:Niagara Junction.

Ahhh--forgot about that one.

Although the South Shore Line in the Chicago area may be considered an interurban, as late as the 1980s there were several industrial sidings which had catenary and were switched by the Little Joe electric locomotives.

That must have been fun--making backup moves in a Little Joe.