CPL signals and how they operate

[NW Mailing List]

Harry, I was an Assistant Trainmaster in Sandusky in 1980-81. I have no idea what you mean or are implying by "Apparently no one knew or cared how cuts of coal crossed the Central's New York-Chicago main line.” Or how any of this relates to how the NYC interlocking logic connected with our signals.

But, since you brought up moving cuts of coal through there, I can’t speak about 50 years ago but 40 years ago, nothing was shoved across the NYC. 60 car cuts were pulled down to the dock - we never filled all the tracks at the dock that the loads went into so one was always available as an escape track for the locomotive.

And the curve was on the north side of the diamond so would only be a factor pulling empties from the dock (and there is no way you could get a locomotive on the rear of a cut of empties to shove them). And the curve wasn’t an issue as the yard crews did not start up from the dock until the yardmaster let them know the NYC (er, I mean Conrail) Dispatcher said they had the signal.

Going to the dock, there were two roads to be crossed before the NYC and it was a straight view from south of the first road (Tiffin Ave. - OH 101) 1/2 mile to the home signal. No crew crossed Tiffin Ave. until they had the signal. Although looking at it today on Google Earth, there is a slight curve south of the diamond but the home signals were so far back, and they were high signals, that they could be seen, as I said, from south of Tiffin Ave.

-- 
Larry Stone
lstone19 at stonejongleux.com





> On Jan 26, 2020, at 2:04 PM, NW Mailing List via NW-Mailing-List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> wrote:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I very much doubt any part of the the NYC interlocking logic knew or cared that on our side, the signals were modified PL signals (they were not standard N&W CPLs -
> 
> Apparently no one knew or cared how cuts of coal crossed the Central's New York-Chicago
> main line.  Arriving coal was stored south of the NYC main, then shoved across  the Central to
> the Lake when needed.  Approaching the diamond in a curve the movement was controlled by
> a trainman hanging on the side of the lead load  using a hose extension to the train line.
> That was 50 years ago.  Maybe radio communications helped.           Harry Bundy
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