Canadian Railroads > Getting Ready for PTC

I wasn't aware that Canadian railways were planning to implement PTC (Positive Train Control), and it may still be years in the future, but I ran into a foreman who was out doing survey work on the Dartmouth Sub today.

The leased hi-rail has what looks like a big stainless steel barbecue in the back, but it's actually a Google Streetview type camera arrangement for recording the right-of-way and its surroundings.  I had a short conversation with the foreman here at the mile 8.70 crossing in Burnside while his associate took GPS reading of various fixtures such as the signal bungalow, points where the rails entered and left the pavement, and electrical bond locations.  I learned that the PTC equipment not only knew where the locomotives of different trains were to an accuracy of less than an inch, but the SBUs also have GPS' integrated into them, and presumably send that information to the head end of the train, or perhaps directly to a satellite.

GTD

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If it will eliminate jobs, the railroad will do it.

The Timmies is the best thing in the photo.