Car movement

nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org
Fri Mar 31 14:53:11 EST 2006



Someone with "office" experience can answer that better, but it isn't cheap.
When a car is first placed on a siding, the customer has something like 48
hours (help me out on this one clerks!). If they hold the car longer,
"demurrage" starts to accrue. If the car is re-spotted at the request of
the customer, there is another switching charge.

Yes, to both.
In the early 1950's it was I think $ 3.00 a day after the first 48 hours and the SOU switching charge 0f 50 cents,
if the car was not spotted where the customer requsted there was no switching charge. Working as extra yard clerk in Alexandria, I would get a re-spot request from a customer on the yard office phone saying the day crew spotted the car at the wrong building door, not from the Henry St Agents office as this was after 4:00P when the office was closed. This was to get me to write an order for the afternoon crew to move the car at no charge when coming back back from the Pepco plant. I was soon tipped off by the crew that the car was already half unloaded at the first door but the rest of the load had to go to another door and the coustomer knew if they called the Agents office to move the car they would have to pay the re-spotting charge, this was the reason for the call to the yard office after 4:00P. Next time I got the same request I then sent a copy of my order to Henry St with the yard office mail.

H.B.Lyon, Furloughed SOU Yard Clerk
Furloughed RF&P Engine.House Clerk



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