Eastern Railroad Discussion > NS Allegheny Helper Operation Question

Does NS helper operations on the old PRR Allegheny summit still involve cutting off helpers on the fly and looping them back to Altoona at the CP-AR/UN complex?  From what I have observed helpers are run through to a variety of locations to provide dynamic braking, yet the loop track is shiny and apprears to be used by something. 

If on-the-fly cut offs and/or looping is no longer performed, when did the practices end?

From my observations, and sure others can add, some helpers
will cut off at MO (on the fly if equipped with helper link), but most will
continue west, most to C (J'town) and some further west.

Although the loop track is used to turn road power on occasion, or
for MofW, it is not normally used for helpers.  As helpers are coupled
back-to-back, there is no need to turn them.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/16/18 10:31 by NKP715.

The loop track stopped being used regularly for helpers after NS took over.

Posted from Android

Helpers will continue as far was as the Pittsburgh area on heavy westbound freights if needed. They will then either be held near CP WING to shove eastward stack trains or run back light to "C" or Altoona as needed.

The loop track has been in use a lot this summer for MoW gangs, Sperry cars, rail grinders, etc.  It can also be used to spin power so an engine with working cab signals can be placed on the head end for trains coming off RJ Corman onto 5 West at Cresson.

Bruce

My experience, when I was a regular on the West Slop during college in the mid-2000s, was that the loop track was used only sporadically, generally either to store something like the rail grinder, or if a helper had a cab signal failure or somesuch.  I recall one year when the E8s came out for Railfest, the loop had been so little-used that the dispatcher had to send a helper set around it just to scrape the rust off the railheads, to improve adhesion for the E8s.

As for cutting helpers off on the fly, it does happen.  An old friend of mine is an engineer in Altoona.  When I asked him if the HelperLink gets used, his reply was "we use it if its there, and it works."