European Railroad Discussion > Signal...and Slip Switch Sunday

Zurich

TAW

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A signal maintainer could work their entire career at that one plant!

So could a track man.  Good greif that's a lot of switches and routes.

My head just exploded.

Riding into or out of Zurich by rail is a very interesting experience.  The Swiss have been building and expanding their railroad system without letup except for during major wars in Europe. Zurich must have hundreds of double slip switches.  Expensive but they save room and get flexibility of routes. Somewhere they must have a factory that cranks those switches out full time.  Jeff 

Perspective:

From Wikipedia:  "The most dense rail network in Europe[55] of 5,250 kilometres (3,260 mi) carries over 596 million passengers annually (as of 2015).[183] In 2015, each Swiss resident travelled on average 2,550 kilometres (1,580 mi) by rail, which makes them the keenest rail users."

RGB

 

Just picture it happening here -- several years ago, they added four tracks to this station, and interlocking, under traffic (something like 2000 trains a day).

TAW



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/14/21 07:42 by TAW.

I can just imagine the dispatcher having a problem getting one of the switches to line properly.  The dispatcher would be telling the conductor, "you have authority to pass the signal displaying stop indication, eastbound main 1 to main 30, and you are instructed to take the 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 5A, 6B, 7A, 7B, 8A, 8B, 9A, 10A, 10B, 11A, 11B, 12A, 12B, 12C, 12D, 13A, 14A, 16B, 16C, 17A, 17B, 18A, 18B, 19A, 20A, 21A, 21B, 22A, 22B, 23A, 23B, 23C, 24A, 24B, 25C, 26B, 27A, 28A, 28B, 29A, 29B, and 30A switches on hand for your route.  Did you copy that?"

PHall Wrote:
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> A signal maintainer could work their entire career
> at that one plant!


Looks like it could take an entire career to get from one end of the plant to the other.

Posted from Android

Maybe it is just my perverted mind, but think how much fun it would be to duplicate in N scale ... with handlaid track ...

 

Will MacKenzie
Dundas, ON

Like old Rafferty used to tell the crews, "Watch the birdie!"

The only place in the USA that I imagine could even approach that scene is Grand Central Terminal, but it's got building foundations and street support columns all over the place and never sees the light of day, so it would be hard to document in similar fashion.
 

NWRail Wrote:
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> I can just imagine the dispatcher having a problem
> getting one of the switches to line properly. 
> The dispatcher would be telling the conductor,
> "you have authority to pass the signal displaying
> stop indication, eastbound main 1 to main 30, and
> you are instructed to take the 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3A,
> 3B, 4A, 5A, 6B, 7A, 7B, 8A, 8B, 9A, 10A, 10B, 11A,
> 11B, 12A, 12B, 12C, 12D, 13A, 14A, 16B, 16C, 17A,
> 17B, 18A, 18B, 19A, 20A, 21A, 21B, 22A, 22B, 23A,
> 23B, 23C, 24A, 24B, 25C, 26B, 27A, 28A, 28B, 29A,
> 29B, and 30A switches on hand for your route. 
> Did you copy that?"

It's Switzerland not Los Angeles or New York!

Very impressive!

https://goo.gl/maps/RXtsCW16RdiG1znP8

https://www.openrailwaymap.org/?style=standard&lat=47.38044454322854&lon=8.531058132648468&zoom=18

thehighwayman Wrote:
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> Maybe it is just my perverted mind, but think how
> much fun it would be to duplicate in N scale ...
> with handlaid track ...
>
Will,
    Let me knoiw when you get it done. I want to see that.
    I'll come visit you in the home. Haha.

Bob Krieger
Cheyenne, WY

thehighwayman Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Maybe it is just my perverted mind, but think how
> much fun it would be to duplicate in N scale ...
> with handlaid track ...
>

Nice shelf layout. It just needs 5 feet by 26 feet plus room for staging at the left (west) end. Quick (and surely inaccurate) count shows you only need to build 45 puzzles and 15 crossings and 20 turnouts.

TAW

Which track do they use for Hi-Wide shipments???

;^)

I have been watching cab ride videos of this area of Switzerland and can say as the train is moving into or out of Zurich it is mind bending as the train takes all of these switches to get into por out either the main above ground station or the 2 underground stations.

Sharon Evans
Glen Allen, VA