VGN Morri Branch

NW Mailing List nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org
Sat Dec 29 22:14:39 EST 2007


Harry,
Thanks. All this makes perfect sense, and the signal blueprints correspond with that date.

Since the signals were installed well after the 1959 merger, why did they install searchlights on the branch instead of the standard N&W CPL? Was it because of timetables and rules?

Ben Blevins


NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> wrote:
Ben:
Construction on the Morri Branch started in 1937-38. Factors
that may have influenced beginning traffic control at
Oceana:

1- The junction of Huff Creek Branch is between Oceana and
Plunkett.

2- In VGN times, Plunkett was a only passing siding.

3- Researching timetables indicates that although the Guyan-
dotte River Branch had been CTC'ed in VGN times, it
was 1972 before CTC was extended from Simon Jct. to
Oceana. By that time, the Hours of Service Law had been
reduced from 16 hours to 12 hours. In VGN times, crews
could run from Elmore to Kopperston and return in 16
hours. With the coming of unit trains, Plunkett became
more prominent. A "River Crew" would ferry the mtys
Elmore to Kopperston, then return to Plunkett to take
rest. A Plunkett crew would run to Kopperston to pick
up the mtys, pull them through the loader, triple the
loads out, then return to Plunkett for the off-duty "River
Crew" to relay to Elmore. The absolute signals at the
east end of Plunkett gave the dispatcher the flexibility
of determining which train got to arrive/leave Plunkett
first . . . . . and it gave him an O.S. Plunkett didn't have
an operator.
Harry Bundy




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