Western Railroad Discussion > BNSF Movement Planner, 100% Compliance

Well, today was the day. At least in the Pacific Northwest BNSF Dispatchers were given mandatory directives to not interfere with Movement Planner anymore no matter how severe delays are to Amtrak, Z’s, S’s or Q’s caused by the computers poor algorithms.

For those who do not know, movement planner designed by Wabtec is a computer that dispatches the railroad. Up until now dispatchers have been able to override poor moves by said computer with permission from the Chief. Let the delays, worsen!



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/24/23 21:45 by PNWDivision10.

It will be interesting to see how track time for track and signal maintenance holds up.
If they fail to make the FRA mandated inspections on their weekly cycle it is no longer legal to run trains.

And consider the inspections required by track speed in Amtrak corridors.

Out

The best way to get rid of it is to let it operate on its own.

Pasco East was pissed at it the other day. She was bitching up a storm. MP had parked two eastbound on the main at Paha and Essig then had my train, plus two more WB's and Amtrak behind all of us run through both siding. She said she had put in like 140 tickets on MP about issues like that and they always came back with "no issue found" so she told Amtrak to report it to some desk when they got to Pasco. It's a constant problem with MP parking trains on the main and then running multiple trains through the sidings. 

On a related note after getting a 5 hour delay leaving Pasco we were supper short on time and the Chief told her we could not throw another unit online to get us in. So we got dog caught short of the terminal. She said it's now 100% compliance on throttle and isolation restrictions no matter what. 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/25/23 06:23 by Pacific5th.

Englewood Wrote:
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> The best way to get rid of it is to let it operate
> on its own.

The conventional wisdom about odious rules used to be to follow them to the letter. No reason this would be any different.

The solution for this issue is "Malicious compliance"

Posted from Android

Follow the instructions and open your pockets so the OT money can flow in.

Day after day, it's looking less and less like a railroad.  Sad, as this "was" a decent industry to work for, and customer service meant something to them.
It's all downhill from here on out, and saving fuel at idle, going downhill.

 

Englewood Wrote:
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> The best way to get rid of it is to let it operate
> on its own.

some dispatchers have been doing that for a while. No one cares. 

Not sure how it works on the railroad, but I was always told "document, document, document".  So when some bonehead idea came down which caused things to go awry, write it down, dates and times.  So when you get called on the carpet for something you did you could just bring out your little log and show you did exactly as instructed.  That usually shut up the bosses who were selling  the latest "brilliant idea" as the panacea for everything.  Probably be a real PITA for dispatchers though, working hundreds of miles of territory, to log every snafu the computer creates, or for train crews who are making the stupid moves the system makes them, but you know the powers that be are not going to admit the failure of their great AI system and will use the workforce as the scapegoat.

INTLRAILTRAVELLER Wrote:
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> The solution for this issue is "Malicious
> compliance"
>
> Posted from Android

It's not even malicious. It's doing exactly what's asked and wanted.

I agree with Englewood. Let Movement Planner have an attempt at its own demise. Easy peasy. . .

The best way to expose a bad plan is to follow the plan.

a very important thing for dispatchers to do is enter delays to trains and the causes of them.

what management decides to do with this delay information is even more important...........

66

Egad, I feel for the employees that have to put up with this stuff.

Is Trip Optimizer train control also tequired?

Posted from Android

Where I work the “management” complains about trains not moving and recrews, then does everything in its power to cause traffic stoppage and recrews.

I have many times said I feel like I’m working for a schizophrenic, manic-depressive alcoholic.

Another analogy I have in my head is of people in the Glass Palace walking around all day complaining of a terrible headache, and then every 10 minutes picking up a roofing hammer and smacking themselves in the forehead.
I like to think if I can just hand them a 2 lb. ball/peen maybe they will finally get the job done and finally end it all, and put us all out of their self induced misery/madness/chaos.

One can only dream.

Regards

Posted from iPhone

PNWDivision10 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Well, today was the day. At least in the Pacific
> Northwest BNSF Dispatchers were given mandatory
> directives to not interfere with Movement Planner
> anymore no matter how severe delays are to Amtrak,
> Z’s, S’s or Q’s caused by the computers poor
> algorithms.
>


Geez the all-powerful management is missing the boat.  Since they feel that they can dictate stuff like this, why don't they do something that will benefit all mankind and declare a total ban on mosquitos.... 

- Norm

just keep saying "the plan is working" over and over !!!

I'm sure the Movement Planner is designed to reduce the number of Train Dispatchers. A few hundred delays here and there are nothing compared to the pay and benefits these employees collect.