Eastern Railroad Discussion > Knuckle heads at it again in Mass.

Setting up scaffolding on the right of way in Harvard, MA to block coal train going to Bow, NH.  I say send them to Antartica on second offense!!!!

https://patch.com/massachusetts/worcester/activists-block-coal-train-leaving-worcester-scaffolding

Bow NH? I recall reading this plant permanently closed.

Posted from Android

It was a short, small train.  The "newspaper" said it was hauling "10,000 pounds" of coal.  

CP8888 Wrote:
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> Bow NH? I recall reading this plant permanently
> closed.

Yes, Bow.  The plant isn't closed, but its been on standby status for several years.  There have been 3-4 coal trains over the last few weeks, however, with a dozen in total supposedly coming.

cinder Wrote:
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> It was a short, small train.  The "newspaper"
> said it was hauling "10,000 pounds" of coal.  

patch.com is hardly a newspaper, but it's what you get when people want their news for free.

And I'm not going to bother to register with it to tell them that weight figure is off by a factor of 2,000. Who wants to take that on? (I do see something about it in the comments....)



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/03/20 10:30 by toledopatch.

toledopatch Wrote:
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> cinder Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > It was a short, small train.  The "newspaper"
> > said it was hauling "10,000 pounds" of coal.  
>
> patch.com is hardly a newspaper, but it's what you
> get when people want their news for free.
>
> And I'm not going to bother to register with it to
> tell them that weight figure is off by a factor of
> 2,000. Who wants to take that on? (I do see
> something about it in the comments....)
Don't really care about the Newspaper, but it has been on the local news stations in the Boston area.  They held the train up for 8 hours...There should be no exceptions to this...this is a CRIME...scaffolding could have derailed that train!!!!!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/03/20 12:35 by bluesboyst.

bigsavage Wrote:
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> The whole situation reminds me of this Hal Kattau
> cartoon during 1976 (US Bicentennial year for
> those under 40)
> The cartoon pondered the ramifications of
> railroads existing during the American Revolution.


My favorite was the GG-1 with kites instead pantographs.

Posted from Android

Doug Wetherhold
Macungie, PA

These ppl, imho, are so misguided.   If they had any talent, they would be spending this time working on a way to get energy with less CO2 production...or invent a way to dispose of, or use up CO2. .  Unfortunately, protesting has become a social activity more than anything else.    They will get their faces on TV, but it will be forgotten in no time...

cinder Wrote:
> It was a short, small train.  The "newspaper"
> said it was hauling "10,000 pounds" of coal.

Yeah, I'd say it was short...one car. And even that one was only loaded to what...about 5% of capacity.
I'm not sure which is worse--the protesters or the reporting.
/Ted  

bluesboyst Wrote:
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> 
> Don't really care about the Newspaper, but it has
> been on the local news stations in the Boston
> area.  They held the train up for 8 hours...There
> should be no exceptions to this...this is a
> CRIME...scaffolding could have derailed that
> train!!!!!

For what it’s worth, today’s Boston Globe writes that a spokesperson for the group that organized the protest stated that they phoned the railroad’s emergency number well in advance of the train arriving, and stationed flaggers several miles before the site of the barricade.  Speed limit is 10mph on this line, which is the former B&M Worcester branch.

Whatever you think of the group’s views and methods, it’s also worth noting that civil disobedience has a rich history in America.  It has been used by people of all political persuasions to highlight issues they feel strongly about, including those protesting segregation, legal abortion, and public land usage.  We tend to be less sympathetic to those who use it when we disagree with their opinions.

Dave



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/04/20 08:37 by DavidP.