Western Railroad Discussion > Gibson Yard Omaha

A few shots from a visit yesterday

1. Looks like new MoW equipment being delivered. Is this a track inspection machine?

2. Power doing flat switching north end of yard

3. A little mudslide at the south end of the yard from heavy rains last week. I don't know if the mud reached the main. The retaining wall was just installed last year. Another mudslide occurred just north of the yard covering a northbound line.

WP

That 1st picture reminds moe of a pushme-pullme from Dr. Dolittle.

No, it's a tamping machine. upkpfan

That is NOT a tamper.
It is a BIG Vibrator

uprrman156

It's properly called a stabilizer. The carriage in the middle of the machine lowers down, clamps to the rail, and vibrates the track as the machine slowly travels. After performing work that disturbs the ballast, like tie renewal or surfacing, a slow order has to be placed on the track. After a certain amount of trains have passed over the track, the speed can be raised. The use of a stabilizer significantly reduces the train count required to get the track back up to full speed.