Steam & Excursion > Not Only Is The Steam Locomotive Long Gone, So Is This Practice!

We often focus here on the evolution of the motive power for railroads in the U.S. without noticing the many other changes that have taken place over the years.  This photo illustrates just how much evolution has occurred in railroad practices in the 6 decades since scenes like this were commonplace.

While we all certainly miss the sights of massive 4-8-4 steam locomotives like Western Pacific #483, we should also notice that enhanced safety rules on railroads have done away with footboards on the front and rear of locomotives along with the long practiced railroad habit of riding those footboards during switching moves.  We see that long-gone practice being played out in this photo.

Time indeed does march on for those railroads still active in this country.  Advances in railroad technology is certainly amazing while advances in railroad safety practices certainly should not go unnoticed.

Martin



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 02/21/19 02:48 by LoggerHogger.

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Though individual railroads may prohibit the riding of footboards in either direction on locomotives so equipped. the FRA is silent on the issue.

FRA no longer permits footboards on locomotives other than steam, but publishes specifications for footboards for steam locomotives.

-John Stein

With steps on all four corners of a diesel locomotive the footboards were kind of superfluous.  Why use a footboard when you have a nice stepwell with grab irons on both sides of it just around the corner?  It's so much safer and easier to ride in them.  Since most of the steam engines don't have that option I guess that's why the FRA still recognizes footboards on them.

wingomann Wrote:
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> With steps on all four corners of a diesel
> locomotive the footboards were kind of
> superfluous.  Why use a footboard when you have a
> nice stepwell with grab irons on both sides of it
> just around the corner?  It's so much safer and
> easier to ride in them.  Since most of the steam
> engines don't have that option I guess that's why
> the FRA still recognizes footboards on them.

Back prior to about 1972, the diesels did NOT have the nice step-wells we are all familiar with today. Those step-wells became an FRA requirement for any/all locomotives assigned to switching service, and older units had to be modified/up-graded by a certain year.

Some practices just evolve or migrate to new places, as evidenced by this photo from last summer...

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Kimball Wrote:
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> Some practices just evolve or migrate to new
> places, as evidenced by this photo from last
> summer...

We sure don't stuff like this around here. That's a three man crew, something that hasn't been seen around here (SoCal) in years.
The trucks around here are one man(woman) operated and are equipped with the bin grabber that lifts and dumps the bin.
This has greatly reduced the number of workmans comp cases for backs which is big savings all by itself.

Just one of many.......Accidentally Killed. February 23, 1907 Alamosa, CO.=  Last Friday evening while switching near the depot, H. E. Crawford made a miss step as the switch engine was approaching him and instead of mounting the switchboard as he intended, his foot went under the board and he was instantly killed by being crowded down between the narrow gauge and broad gauge rails as the engine passed over him.
The deceased was a steady, sober and industrious railroad man and as one of the boys said to the Courier man, “It seems that the most careful and best boys on the road are the ones that are getting killed.”