If I had not already packed my 1893 Guide in preparation for moving, I could give you the name of each road. Hugh Cook is Wyoming Public Radio's Northeast Reporter, based in Gillette. Most of those are of a standard BNSF design; the center piece, providing 23 feet, 6 inches of clearance over the lower main line, is an 87 four-girden deck-plate steel span. Note that the Puget Sound Extension and the WP were built in the 1905-1910 time frame and train speeds were up significantly from 30 to 40 years earlier. Frisco always changed freight crews at Newburg, MO but my grandpa as passenger conductor changed at Monett, MO, which was farther down the line. Allan_Love_Jr TrainBoard Member. There really are some Knowledgeable Fans out there. You there, Mr. Lee? Someone emailed this info to me. > * BNSF/UP: Denver to Winter Park (Does BNSF use helpers? I though I saw articles in the mainstream press in the '80's that they were extending crew districts from east of Spokane, WA, across the Idaho panhandle, and over onto the flatland's of Montana. Members of both unions from all involved railroads are welcome to attend. At times they will change within minutes of stopping at the "crosswalk" where employees cross the mainline, and at other times the incoming crew will "tie down" their train on the main-line and the train will wait for literally hours on the main for the outgoing (new) crew. We see this very often here. Otherwise there is a pool that runs straight through Savanna to Cicero and also a pool out of La Crosse to Galesburg. Railroads & Locomotives Maps BNSF Railway crew districts. These stories highlight some of our favorite examples of how we apply innovation to railroading. Usually though, a long pool crew on trains that normally go to the short pool will still change out at Boone and theLP crew will continue on to the other end in a van. Retirees may not work at BNSF any longer, but many are active in their communities and play an important role as unofficial ambassadors for BNSF. Garrett - Chciago is about 150 miles while Williard - Chicago is around 280. Unlimited Members, sign in to enjoy sitewide access. Wyoming Public Radio | Terms Of Use | Notice at Collection | Privacy | 2022 BNSF Railway Company. Amazing the mass of RR knowledge amongst the members of this forum. All engine crews changed in McComb; thus all passenger engine crews ran 100 miles from start to finish. I wish I had asked a trainman how the pay was calculated, since some of the turn arounds were short. Bassano was located at almost the exact halfway point on the Sub. Thanks to all the responses so far--both here in the newsgroup and viaemail. Zug, I still enjoy talking with railroad employees, but I am very careful about initiating conversations. Here we focus on topics that illustrate our commitment to where we live and work. BNSF crews frequently change crews here at Eola yard in Aurora, IL. Others are where two adjacent crew districts were merged into one, with the crews running through the former change point between the two on all, or most trains. I can remember when the "featherbedding" talk began, about needing to keep crews in the trains longer because the trains were faster and did they really need three men in the cab and two in the rear. > * Denver northeast: Sterling, CO? We enable our customers to participate in a wide range of markets in North America and around the world. We see this very often here. Would this be in the ballpark for the Hi Line? You can rely on BNSFs team of experts to help educate you on the benefits of incorporating our rail network into your supply chain. The average daily rate while in training as a new hire conductor will be approximately $221 per day, or $27.68 per hour (based on . The railroad said they made no changes to how much time off an employee receives. Satellite view on Google maps shows a lot of empty lots in the town and I guess that the population may have been 300 to 500 at its peak. Since trains are stopping to give one crew rest and to pick up fresh conductors and engineers, adding another "lane" allows trains that have completed their crew change to get moving again and for faster traffic to pass slower traffic more readily. You there, Mr. Lee? Usually, the two crew districts that abutted became one double-ended district. They can be added if employees work during periods that are more in demand. I believe it was cptrainman of the "Hunter, . This was a 4-mile, single-track chokepoint until March 2011, when the railroad completed a 30-month, $85 million effort to push through a second track. I have to look thru some stuff, but I think they used to change at Melstone, MT. In order to get a minimum speed of 12 or so MPH on the 0.5% ruling grades, the locomotives should have been able to maintain 25 or more MPH on level track, hence my wondering about 200 mile crew changes. Recognizing our contribution to our nation's economy, we work to listen and respond to customers' needs, maintain strong corporate governance, provide value to investors, and strategically invest to keep our rail network strong. Within these districts there are pools that work to/from intermediate terminals, such as Clinton to Marshalltown. I though I saw articles in the mainstream press in the '80's that they were extending crew districts from east of Spokane, WA, across the Idaho panhandle, and over onto the flatland's of Montana. Back to CP for a moment, Calgary-Edmonton, AB is broken into two Sub's.,Red Deer and Leduc, totaling about 180 miles. - Erik. BNSF crew change points. Remember, in the time when the basic crew agreements and the 100 mile day were originated,when after the implementation of the Hours of Service laws - those laws had a maximum on duty time of 16 hours - 16 hours for a 100 mile run equals 6.25 MPH. Does the UP still have a Proviso to Boone long pool? Vancouver, WA (Portland)-Pasco, WA-Hauser,ID, Hauser, ID-Missoula, MT-Helena, MT-Laurel, MT. This change made two crew districts out of what were three, running thru the traditional terminals atAvery, ID and Malden, WA. ), then Ogden? * Denver north: Cheyenne, WY, then . -- Steve Holmes, Steve Holmes Productions (helping companies communicate through award-winning video)Iowa City, IA, USAhttp://www.shpvideo.com My address: sigerson "at" inav "dot" net (replace "" words withsymbols). Five years ago, a conductor on the Southwest Chief initiated a conversation with me when, as I was standing in the aisle outside the room my wife and I occupied, she ran into my arms. Nothing against the over-eager railfans, but the only thing we wanted to think about was sleep. Check this site for information about benefits and retirement plans. Back when there were foru passenger trains each way on the division,except for the City of New Orleans, passenger train crews changed southbound (the City train crews changed northbound), ran to New Orleans (Canton), then ran through McComb to Canton (New Orleans), and then back to McComb, covering 400 miles in 24 hours (and then had 24 hours off). While they have been built to provide lodging for AFHT crews, they are open to the public as well. / KC / Ft. Madison / Chicago. I spent quite a few summers in Miles City (my dad's home town) during the 1970's and heard Harlowton mentioned quite a few times, but don't recall hearing about Melstone. (While not directly owned, supposedly the ownership has ties to the UP.) Welcome to the BNSF Railway at Edgemont South Dakota website. Don't miss this look at the history of America's most influential builder of locomotives. The Western Pacific also had some ~200 mile crew districts. BNSF modified their policy on June 1. Many owe their existence to it. Find the right person to help you with your retirement benefit questions, including health insurance, the Employee Assistance Program and payroll. LION *knows* that Mandan is a crew change point, but Dickinson is so no longer, and the next crew change point is Glendive, MT. Thanks for joining us! BNSF 1859-345 hump engines. When crews are tight on either pool at either end, they use crews out of either pool. At times they will change within minutes of stopping at the "crosswalk" where employees cross the mainline, and at other times the incoming crew will "tie down" their train on the main-line and the train will wait for literally hours on the main for the outgoing (new) crew. "We have had a lot of people resign, quit working, and not just Gillette, across the system, because they went and found other jobs. Maybe an old BN expert can help us here, but didn't BN change some crew districts in Montana to run up to 450 miles? * Denver northeast: Sterling, CO? Meanwhile, BNSF is spending $581 million this year to forge . I think the Miles City to Harlowton run was one of them. myemployer, any other railroad, company, or person. His perigrinations may take him intoneighboring parts of Wyoming and New Mexico, possibly Nebraska orKansas, too. Some railroaders have said the policy incentivizes employees to work while sick or tired, something that Goodson can very much relate to. It would mark a dramatic change to a labor contract that covers about 3,000 workers, or 60 percent of the BNSF system. The reason why so many (former complainers included) drive to workit, it's set up to work about 8 round trips per month and pays good. Find the right person at BNSF to answer your question by filling out our form. I guess he's got a point because all the trains stopat such places. If the district is too long tor its conditions of traffic and geography, the crew hogs out short of its final terminal, and is dogged or patched by a relief crew (idiom varies) two crews have been paid a days wages to do what was supposed to be the work of one. By, Sheridans WYO Theater Announces the Met Opera: Live in HD, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF), Activist Judy Heumann led a reimagining of what it means to be disabled, Cannabis business owner now earns praise for what he was once arrested for, Northern Ireland businesses are cautiously optimistic about EU trade agreement, The U.S. is playing catch-up in the EV battery market, says Biden energy adviser, Coal shipments are down and a looming nationwide railroad strike likely will make it worse, Transportation in Yellowstone has gone through many changes over the past 150 years, A historians thoughts on how America both protects and exploits public lands, A Gillette railroad union leader says agreement between major freight railroads and rail unions is a start. Amtrak runs Whitefish to Havre, but I think all freights recrew at Shelby, MT, I think the other crew change is at Wolf Point, MTrather than Glasgow, MT. For the moment I still have more tracks, trains, and switches then they do, but that is changing rapidly, as two new rail facilities are planned for this town. I know one is La Crosse, WI and I'm guessing those crews run to the Twin Cities. Back in my road days, when we'd end up at a hotel after a very long and tiring trip, and some guy who was obviously an over-eager railfan would see us and ask us if we were railroaders, we'd always answer: NOPE! Years ago while overnighting in the Super 8 in Ft Madison, Iowa I had the pleasure to talk to a BNSF (ex Santa Fe) crewman. --Ken Stitzel (k@fc.hp.com)Learning Products Engineer (tech writer with functional enhancements), Hewlett-Packard Company (a pretty cool company to work for), Fort Collins, Colorado, USA (somewhere east of Masonville), (Opinions stated herein are provided without warranty and are not, representative of official or unofficial HP policy on shootercrew changes. ;-), --Kirk PettyABC Sign Productskpe@psd.k12.co.uskpe@abcsignproducts.comhttp://www.abcsignproducts.com ____________________________ __________________________ ___/oo|====~~~~~~~~~~~########|| |########~~~~~~~~~~====|oo\____ I_|______UNION PACIFIC__=_=_=_=|_I I_|______UNION PACIFIC___|_____|_I `-'O==O==O`-------------'O==O==O`-'~`-'O==O==O`-------------'O==O==O`-, Either email addresses are anonymous for this group or you need the view member email addresses permission to view the original message. A fourth-generation Northeast Wyoming native, Hugh joined Wyoming Public Media in October 2021 after studying and working abroad and in Washington, D.C. for the late Senator Mike Enzi. Can someone in road service choosewhich pool to work in? Click here to learn about the Unlimited Membership. Trenton ON was eliminated as an away from home terminal for Toronto East Pool and Smiths Falls West Pool crews. Dickinson crews still run locals between New Salem and Beach including the ever growing rail hub of RICHARDTON ND. Find images, videos and PDFs that help tell you more about BNSF. * Pueblo east: ??? I guess you're right. If going via the old C&S/FW&D its Trinidad, Texline, Amarillo,then Wichita Falls.If going via C&S to Trinidad and then ATSF it would be aC&S crew to Trinidad, then ATSF crew to Raton then Albuquerque. $221/day, with an average annual salary of $70,000 - $82,000. "A Train is a Place Going Somewhere" CP Rail Public Timetable. Helpers cut off at Palmer Lakeor Colorado Springs (Grain trains). Jeff:Thanks for the explanations. Thanks very much guys. Then run pools (through Clinton) to Missouri Valley (hot intermodals only), to Boone (everything else), and pools to Des Moines and Mason City. BNSF said more than 50 percent of train crew employees work less than 40 hours on average. With only one curve sharper than 3 degrees between the two points, the track alignment was well suited for 50 to 60 MPH freight running - though track maintenance may have been another story. EDIT: To answer the original poster's question I checked with what limited ressources I have, and found the following CP (ex Soo Line) crew change points in his part of the world. To participate you must either login or register for an account. Rail is the most environmentally efficient mode of surface transportation and at BNSF we are committed to improving the efficiency of our network in a way that benefits both our customers and the environment. Ideally, a crew goes on duty, gets its paperwork, gets out of the yard, reaches its destination, and ties up comfortably within the maximum 12 hours on duty allowed by the federal hours-of-service law. It just affects the waythe train crew's pay is calculated. If anybody could help me out, that would be awesome. I can remember when the "featherbedding" talk began, about needing to keep crews in the trains longer because the trains were faster and did they really need three men in the cab and two in the rear. The hotel provides transportation for thecrews and for passengers who come in or go out of the station in Renssalaer, and it is possible to ride in a van with the railroad employees. 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Men in chain gang freightservice preferred being called in McCombfor a run to Gwin, since it was farther than a run to New Orleans. "I honestly hope that this isn't going to be the new normal because people are walking out faster than we can hire them on," said Goodson. Things changed since Sept 11, 2001. 546 posts BNSF Crew Change Points (Transcon and Hi Line) Posted by Doublestack on Monday, June 4, 2007 10:39 PM Good evening, Someone recently asked me how many crew changes it takes to get from Chicago to LA vs. Chicago to Seattle. In 1992, Santa Fe began a decades-long project to double-track the 512 miles of the route that remained single-tracked. Crew changes can happen anywhere of course, but crews do frequently change in Savanna, IL which is the convergence of the C&I line to Chicago and the Barstow Sub south to Galesburg. It is approximately 185 miles long, which was a huge accomplishment back then. Enjoy moving trains in breathtaking scenes across the country, all year long. "It was a way to limit time off even though they didn't have a lot of people and they needed a lot of people," said Knutson. Curiosity about Melstone got to me and found out that it now has a population of 96, down from 136 in 2000. Back to CP for a moment, Calgary-Edmonton, AB is broken into two Sub's.,Red Deer and Leduc, totaling about 180 miles. ), then Ogden? This year alone, BNSF is investing approximately $1 billion into the 2,200-mile Southern Transcon route. Since 2001, BNSF has eliminated districts running to Eugene, Ore., Helena, Mont., Quanah, Texas, Mobile, Ala., and International Falls, Minn. Curiosity about Melstone got to me and found out that it now has a population of 96, down from 136 in 2000. Tell your friend that all trainsstop in Rawlins, as the Main Line Fuel Rack is located there. Alaska Railfanning / My ARR Photos on Flickr. Each employee would be given 30 points for the rest of their career but would be docked points for taking off weekdays (two points), weekends (four points), and holidays (ten points). At BNSF, we are committed to providing you the information you need to make informed transportation decisions. I'm a teetotaler, so that thought is never on my mind. One thing to remember is there are some long and some short pools. She said the policy isn't compassionate toward employees. But I hear it is coming. Just west of Minot, the train rolled over the 1792-foot-long, 117-foot-tall Gassman Coulee Trestle, one of many high steel bridges on the GN. Satellite view on Google maps shows a lot of empty lots in the town and I guess that the population may have been 300 to 500 at its peak. Canadian Passenger Operations: AMT, Go Transit, VIA, etc. * Denver west (UP trackage rights): do they go all the way to Grand Junction or do they change at Bond again like UP does? They also handle (normally) the salad shooters. It's grown enough that engineer's need about half of that, even less for conductors. from Calgary to Medicine Hat, AB, created in 1910. Get the answers to the questions most commonly asked about BNSF. The Super 8 was their lodging and it was set up with a computer terminal for employees to "see" the railroad and determine what their near future entailed. ), --Ken Stitzel (k@fc.hp.com)Learning Products Engineer (tech writer with functional enhancements)Hewlett-Packard Company (a pretty cool company to work for) Fort Collins, Colorado, USA (Opinions stated herein are provided without warranty and are not representative of official or unofficial HP policy on crew/helperhelp. Get in touch with us using the Media Contacts list on the left. Learn more about what it means to do business with BNSF and the process we use for working with suppliers. > * Denver south: Pueblo> * Pueblo south: Trinidad? "With over 17 million intermodal loads transported by rail annually, BNSF's Southern Transcon is one of several key routes for the movement of goods from Southern California to Chicago," said Joni Casey, president and CEO, Intermodal Association of North America. We're proud to tell our story and how we strive to be a trusted partner worthy of your respect. BNSF moves about a third of all intermodal volume in North America. A couple less employees to receive benefits. It is approximately 185 miles long, which was a huge accomplishment back then. Our community is FREE to join. But she added that incentive ultimately rewards those who take little, if any, time off and who don't need the points anyway. Job Location: Mandan Other Potential Locations: Mandan, ND Anticipated Start Date: 04/10/2023 Number of Positions: 20 Salary Range: Entry rate is approx. The additional high iron allows 70-mph intermodal trains to leap ahead of slower-moving merchandise and unit trains at crew-change points, which BNSF says will alleviate congestion, boost average train speed, and improve service on the busiest intermodal route in North America. While it may not save the railroad money on wages, it saves them on the cost of benefits. One of this year's projects was to add a fourth main through Amarillo, Texas. So if you want to rub elbows with train crews while you travel, the Oak Tree is the place to do it. Sometimes it would take the the full 16 hours on the HOS to make the run. "I would love to get whoever made this policy happen or said okay to it to come and join us for a week on how it is day to day," she urged. Someone recently asked me how many crew changes it takes to get from Chicago to LA vs. Chicago to Seattle. BNSF purchases material and service items from an extensive list of sources. Long pools for some runs where Intermodals can skip crew changes, but slower freights can't. For nearly 170 years, BNSF has been safely and efficiently transporting freight and helping shape our country's history. I thought they also did a UPcrew district map too, but I may be thinking about a map on the UP company website. Paul MN. The western end of the Hi-Line should read like this; Interbay (Seattle)-Wentachee, WA.-Hauser, ID-Whitefish, MT.-Shelby, MT.-Havre, MT. Microsoft Train Simulator BNSF Phoenix Sub Crew Change Points? Vancouver, WA or Pasco, WA-Wishram, WA-Bend, OR-Klamath Falls, OR-Keddie, CA-Stockton, CA? I doubt many trains could've made the extra 70 or so miles to Rochelle on their hours. They seem to use the Williard crews for the long distance intermodals (from east coast) and Williards for the manifests and commodity trains. This is via La Junta,they can't go via Trinidad. We do not sell train simulator software. In Iowa, they started running Atkins, IA on the Council Bluffs main and Nahant (Davenport) on the KC line. Whenever I go to the local Amtrak station I enjoy talking with the agent when he is not busy with other people, even telling him that his worst nightmare has come back to him. Also Portal, ND and Noyes, MN, but that is because thay are also Country change points(Canada/US border). Knutson said he thinks the policy was implemented for several reasons. Jeff, another hotel where you can rub shoulders with men in road service is the Clarion Hotel in Albany, N.Y. It is interesting when you look at old ETT's. Allan_Love_Jr Aug 26, 2007. While it may not save the railroad money on wages, it saves them on the cost of benefits. (Trains that continue to Ft Worth changenext at Childress but the Dalhart to Childress and Childressto Ft Worth segments are also over ambitious. Note that the Puget Sound Extension and the WP were built in the 1905-1910 time frame and train speeds were up significantly from 30 to 40 years earlier. It has brought morale down to an all-time low.". I know OTR truckers are only to work so many hours before they have to sign out and rest. I find it ironic that the MILW expandend some of their districts just as deferredmaintenance caused speeds to drop. In older times, it would take much longer as the trains were slower. Getting people and freight between Southern California and Chicago once took months, weeks or even years. Then Alliance, NE? Then Alliance, NE? Here, youll find news releases, customer notifications and media assets available for use by news organizations. Since crews are usually pooled on a first-in, first-out basis, everyone still has the same opportunity to rack up miles and thus pay. I'm not sure if crews run through from Keddie to Stockton, or if there is a crew change at Marysville, CA. The Hi-Viz policy impacts all employees, not just the ones that are operating trains. Whenever I go to the local Amtrak station I enjoy talking with the agent when he is not busy with other people, even telling him that his worst nightmare has come back to him. On the CPR, in Canada, the longest crew district is the Brooks Sub. I'd wonder if the average speed of the slowest Milwaukee freights on the Trans-Missouri Division during the first generation diesel era would have been more like 25 MPH as opposed to 12.5 MPH. BNSF said that they're aggressively hiring but Goodson said the situation on the ground is that more employees are leaving than can be hired on. Correct, the hours of service were changed as follows: 16 hours to 14 hours on December 26, 1970, 14 hours to 12 hours on December 26, 1972. Back in my road days, when we'd end up at a hotel after a very long and tiring trip, and some guy who was obviously an over-eager railfan would see us and ask us if we were railroaders, we'd always answer: NOPE! To participate you must either login or register for an account. Each intermodal train carries as much freight as 280 trucks, helping alleviate congestion on our nation's highways. However, the longestcrew division is CP's Belleville Subdivision from Smiths Falls ONto Toronto Yard (197 track miles) where the Toronto Terminal officially begins or ends. Originally theyhad the hot trains, with the lesser ones going to the short pool. jeffhergert "The attendance policy we had in the past, it would allow basically any person to take two weekend days and five weekdays per month off," he explained. I hear talk about crews having to be changed because trains are late and their time is up, that doesn't seem to go by mileage. 16. )* UP east from Grand Junction??? I have to look thru some stuff, but I think they used to change at Melstone, MT. Since crews are usually pooled on a first-in, first-out basis, everyone still has the same opportunity to rack up miles and thus pay. I recall seeing a Steffee speed survey (mid-1960's?) "We think those things are critical to protect the velocity and safety of our network," she says. I threw inFremont and Boone in case he's driving that way, or in case wanderlusttakes him east the same way my "as long as I'm in the neighborhood"reasoning got me to Albuquerque when I'd only planned on going as farsouthwest as Denver. I haven't heard of this in a long time, so maybe this was a failed idea. It takes a lot of workers to keep the railroad running efficiently. Every scheduled train from First Class passenger trains to Fourth Class freights had a scheduled stop for water at Bassano. Melstone was almost certainly a crew change location in that it was almost exactly halfway between Harlow and Miles, along with being the only spot between Roundup and Miles City with more than two parallel tracks. The reason why so many (former complainers included) drive to workit, it's set up to work about 8 round trips per month and pays good. (Some of these are the same ones who always complained about the long pool because the LP crewsusually get priority to get over the road, no matter what type of train they are on, so they usually go around you.). BNSF Editor CTC Board Magazine [ Reply To This Message ] Date: 01/10/02 19:00 Thanks Author: dbm. According to Knutson, taking time off for a doctor or dental appointment can cost an employee several points. This is part one of a video I made on my tour 8 across the country 2018 stopping in Needles California at the BNSF train yard to catch one of the many trains. Would this be the right list for the Transcon?

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