Train Dispatchers

"Arguing with a dipatcher is like wrestling with a pig in the mud...after a while you realize the pig is enjoying it!!!"

I haven't physically met any dispatchers that I deal with yet, but would like to so that I can match a face to the voice (plus some of the female dispatchers sound so cute, lol).

I work mostly with foreign railroad dispatchers (Amtrak & MBCR) and the regulars know me and work with me as far as moving me (unless we don't want to).

I'm sure Snoozer knows what I mean since he knows most of the territory which I work. There are times where we don't have much to do and if I just tell the dispatchers the truth about wanting to go for the quit, they do their best to help out, as long as we don't screw any passenger trains in the process. And as for making extra money, if we want to stay out a little longer they are willing to help with that as well.

When I started in the Dispatcher's Office the Dispatcher that I posted with said to me, " it will help you in your decisions for movement if you know your crews." It was the best advise, not only for movement, but there are a lot of great people out there and getting to know them has proven to be an asset that nobody can take away.

Problems that seem to plague crews/dispatchers is the insensitivity towards each others postions.

I work on the LIRR and honestly I find our Dispatchers to be great guys. I made it my business to know them all real well and if you go out of your way to not cause them any grief, they give you the railroad.

I spent about 8 years as a Train Dispatcher. Mostly passenger (Amtrak & MBTA) with a few freights built in. Every dispatcher has a "list". Who will run for you and who won't. The list isn't written anywhere but they have them. Dispatchers also have long memories LOL. If they get a hard time from a crew, they just store that in the back of their memory and one night, somebody is looking for the quit, and bamm. Now I'm on the other end of the radio (engineer). I don't always get a great move but I suck it up and deal with it because I know he or she can make my life miserable. Most don't but they could. Before I was a dispatcher, I was a block operator. Part of my training they brought me up to the dispatchers office and I asked the dispatcher who I'd be working under if he any words of advice. He told me "as long as you realize that I'm god, you'll be fine." I said to myself thats what I want to do. LOL. All in all, we work together but as in all crafts there is always a few bad apples.