Eastern Railroad Discussion > FL: observations on the FEC Stuart bridge

I've had the opportunity to be in Stuart several times this week, and I've noticed a return to "old" operating practices.

The operation of the draw bridge over the St Lucie River used to be run like a Swiss watch. Twenty minutes before a train, the signals at the bridge lighted, three reds. Twelve minutes before, the siren would go off, lights flash, and an automated voice would announce the bridge closes soon. About eight minutes before, the bridge would go down, and the signals would change to green plus two reds (for a northbound). Moments after the train passed over, the bridge would rise.

That practice changed in the past year, with the bridge sometimes going down for a half hour prior or more to the train's arrival. Or, going down for a northbound, and staying down as a southbound came out of RIO siding, about a mile north of the bridge. That sort of thing infuriated the boat owners, and led to a lot of rancor.

Well, I saw the sand train go north around 7.30pm with an SD40-2 and a GP40-2. Bridge went up after the train passed, but the signals remained lighted. About ten minutes later, the warnings kicked in, and the bridge eventually descended. Notably, many boats went in and out during the up period. Train 101 with an LNG set came south with its load of TOFC, COFC, and manifest. I'm guessing the sand train was in the hole at RIO.

Bridge went back up, but signals remained lighted. I played a hunch and headed south to find the local coming out of Port Sewall siding, where it undoubtedly waited out 101, and maybe the sand train.

If I had to guess, I'd guess somebody high up on the FEC food chain decided they could make nice with the boat owners the Coast Guard, and with Congressman Mast at little or no cost. A few months ago FEC would have likely left the bridge down for an hour. I saw that happen a few times, and mentioned it here.

Just for information, the signals lighting up at Stuart or most other places on FEC indicates that the dispatcher has set up a route for a train to, if not beyond, the location in question. If they stay lit up after a train that has passed exits that block, it does mean that something else has been stacked in. Other than the fact that a permissive aspect cannot be displayed if the bridge is not lined and locked for rail traffic, there is no set amount of time between the signals lighting up and either the bridge going down or a train's arrival, whereas I'm unsure how the bridge's automation works.

toledopatch Wrote:
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> Just for information, the signals lighting up at
> Stuart or most other places on FEC indicates that
> the dispatcher has set up a route for a train to,
> if not beyond, the location in question. If they
> stay lit up after a train that has passed exits
> that block, it does mean that something else has
> been stacked in. Other than the fact that a
> permissive aspect cannot be displayed if the
> bridge is not lined and locked for rail traffic,
> there is no set amount of time between the signals
> lighting up and either the bridge going down or a
> train's arrival, whereas I'm unsure how the
> bridge's automation works.

Agreed.

FEC has gone back to a system that worked well for decades, and is likely to relieve some pressure from the yacht owners and fisher people.