Long Freight Trains: Transportation Research Board study is finally published

[MARC Rider]

https://nap.nationalacademies.org/c...ng-safe-operations-mitigating-adverse-impacts


Recommendations:

"SUMMARY ASSESSMENT AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Longer Manifest Trains Can Create New and Heightened Safety Risks Requiring Active Control
Communities Experiencing Chronic Blocked Highway-Rail Grade Crossings Need Real Solutions
Freight Railroads Should Be Deterred from Using Long Trains Where They Will Impede Amtrak Trains"


National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2024. Long Freight Trains: Ensuring Safe Operations, Mitigating Adverse Impacts. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/27807.

Unfortunately, I think given the current political reality, it's not clear that any of these recommendations will be implemented.

 

[City of Miami]

What do you think is unique about "current political reality" vis a vis railroads?

 

[Stevenz]

I’ll weigh in to say that current political reality is that any new restrictions on private business are not going to happen, and many will be removed.

 

[cirdan]

I am surprised railroads genuinely want this. Trains are already very long and this means staff productivity must be very good already. Longer trains mean less frequent services, with cars spending more time waiting in yards, all factors that further erode the competitiveness of railroads versus trucks. Also operationally, trains will take longer to inspect and things like speed restrictions will take longer to clear, meaning train speeds overall will be reduced further. Even if all the safety-related and potential political questions can be resolved, can this really make a good business case?

 

[John Santos]

I am surprised railroads genuinely want this. Trains are already very long and this means staff productivity must be very good already. Longer trains mean less frequent services, with cars spending more time waiting in yards, all factors that further erode the competitiveness of railroads versus trucks. Also operationally, trains will take longer to inspect and things like speed restrictions will take longer to clear, meaning train speeds overall will be reduced further. Even if all the safety-related and potential political questions can be resolved, can this really make a good business case?

If your business model is to maximize next quarter profits and you can defer maintenance for a few quarters (until catastrophe strikes the government bails you out), then yes, it is a very good business case. It is all about externalizing costs.

 

[BlackDiamond]

Longer trains mean less frequent services, with cars spending more time waiting in yards, all factors that further erode the competitiveness of railroads versus trucks.

I wonder if statistics bear this out. It might not always mean cars spend more time sitting in yards. For example in the past you might have had a train running from A to B, then the cars get classified into another train running from B to C. Now they might run one train from A to C that stops at B, drops a block of cars, and picks up cars for C, then proceeds to C. So cars moving from A to C get there sooner. Advances in control of Distributed Power allows ridiculously long trains without worry of pulling drawbars or breaking couplers. Of course there are other drawbacks to longer trains as noted in the above posts.