Winston Salem District Signals

[NW Mailing List]

The signals were CPLs. At least in Martinsville, as I was about 14 years old
when the Punkin' Vine was converted to TC. I didn't have the mobility to
railfan like I do now!



On Mon, Jul 20, 2009 at 6:15 AM, NW Mailing List
<nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>wrote:


> Before the WS line was converted to TC, what kind of signals were

> there?  I have a sneaking suspicion that they were Style S semaphores.

>  Am I close?

>

> And, yes, at Henry the south end of the siding has automatic signals

> where the home signals used to be.  A lot of this makes sense now.  I

> just didn't know the particulars that created the situation.

>

> Ben Blevins

>

>

> On 7/16/09, NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> wrote:

> >

> >

> > Ben:

> > Prior to TC installation, the W-S district had 19 passing sidings from

> > Roanoke

> > Terminal to North Winston which averaged 3574 feet in length.? There were

> > 15 day telegraph offices plus Payne (24/7), so during the day, there was

> an

> > operator every 7.4 miles.? After TC, nine sidings were removed or

> shortened,

> > but seven passing sidings remained - Boone's Mill, Starkey, Henry, and

> > others.? They became designated "storage tracks" in the timetable.?

> What's

> > the significance of a storage track ?? I don't know.? Apparently N&W felt

> > it wasn't necessary to provide power switches and signaling for these

> short

> > sidings.? By 1972, the telegraph offices had been reduced from 15 to 9

> and

> > that's how N&W got the economic justification to install traffic control.

> >

> > As far as the signal at the north end of Henry being a controlled signal

> --

> > remember -- a train can pass a stop-and-proceed (or restricting) signal

> and

> > proceed at restricted speed.? North of the signal at Henry, there

> are?three

> > back-to-back 10 degree curves and then the ruling grade (1.53%) to

> Ferrum.

> > If you have a set of?pusher units returning light from Belews Creek with

> a

> > one

> > man crew and it's following a train grinding up the hill, it's not

> exactly

> > the

> > safest practice.? Remember the definition of restricted speed ?? "Able

> to?

> > stop?short of? etc., etc. etc."? It's probably as quick to hold?a train

> at

> > the

> > bottom of Ferrum Hill than it is to allow it to follow at restricted

> speed.

> > Safer too.

> >

> > Henry had been home to Blue Ridge Paints.? It was one of eight companies

> > that

> > supplied paint to N&W for hoppers.? After TC, apparently the signals at

> the

> > south end remained, but weren't able to display a "STOP" indication.? A

> > local doing "one-in, one-out" switching at Blue Ridge Paints would have

> had

> > to follow the procedure for passing a "STOP" indication.? That's one

> > person's

> > interpretation.? I wish Henry Nase was still around.

> > ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Harry

> Bundy

> > ????

> > ??

> >

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- "Computers are useless. They can only give you answers."
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