Railroaders' Nostalgia > WP had more than one way to call the dispatcher

The thread on 4/8 about SP phone use reminded me about an interesting feature of the lineside dispatcher phones on the Western Pacific. In the event the phone lines were down, one could actually talk through the rails. Instructions were posted in every phone booth, and it involved throwing a knife switch on the phone booth wall to connect the circuit. One was then supposed to whistle into the phone for ten seconds so the dispatcher knew you were calling through the track and throw his switch so he could reply the same way. I never tried to (or had any reason to) use this method, nor ever heard of anyone else who did.  

Remember the movies with someone putting their ear to the rails to tell if a train was coming? Maybe they could listen in on your conversations with the dispatcher - i.e. 'railtapping'

How was the phone signal able to travel beyond insulated joints or any track branching away from the main?

 

Beats me, or how the phone signal could coexist with signal codes. Perhaps something like impedance bonds, which were used by signalled electrified railroads (to get past insulated joints)? I'd love to learn more. All I know is that is was mentioned in brakeman class when I hired out, and the instructions were posted in each phone booth.

wpamtk Wrote:
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> Beats me, or how the phone signal could coexist
> with signal codes. Perhaps something like
> impedance bonds, which were used by signalled
> electrified railroads (to get past insulated
> joints)? I'd love to learn more. All I know is
> that is was mentioned in brakeman class when I
> hired out, and the instructions were posted in
> each phone booth.

The phone system I'm familiar with that acted as described was the code phone. It didn't use the rails; it used the code line (the pair that sent the pulse codes between bungalows and the office).

TAW

I'm a telephone company guy and I have no idea how they did that. There must be some special circuitry with shunts and the like involved.
I'm just glad I didn't have to maintain it!

TAW Wrote:
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> wpamtk Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Beats me, or how the phone signal could coexist
> > with signal codes. Perhaps something like
> > impedance bonds, which were used by signalled
> > electrified railroads (to get past insulated
> > joints)? I'd love to learn more. All I know is
> > that is was mentioned in brakeman class when I
> > hired out, and the instructions were posted in
> > each phone booth.
>
> The phone system I'm familiar with that acted as
> described was the code phone. It didn't use the
> rails; it used the code line (the pair that sent
> the pulse codes between bungalows and the
> office).
>
> TAW
Again, what I described above is what we were told. I wish I had something on paper to back it up, but there you have it.

Used the dispatchers phone a lot and can't remember seeing those instructions in any phone box from Oakland to Oroville.  Could they have been only used in remote locations, I.E. the desert or the canyon?  Do remember the knife switch inside them though.  As an aside saw WP MoW using field telephones many times  with a long pole to reach the wires for the dispatcher's phone line and a handset in a wooden box.  And have a view of a field phone in use!

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