Passenger Trains > Wounded Zephyr Rolling West

Here is today's wounded Zephyr rolling west at Soda Springs, with a UP rescue unit on the point.

The freight motor was added after the train hit a concrete truck east of Sparks.
 

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So why exactly did they need to add the UP unit to the point when there is that P42 there in the consist?
It's even facing the right way.

for speed's sake i imagine

PHall Wrote:
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> So why exactly did they need to add the UP unit to
> the point when there is that P42 there in the
> consist?
> It's even facing the right way.

The only possibility I can see is that the P42 has bad order PTC, or some other reason why it can't lead.  Obviously the MU receptacle and the brake hoses on the front of the Charger are OK, as the freight unit is coupled in MU to the three units...

Sure seems like they could have set the trailing Charger up to lead, and then cut the two Chargers off and set them over to the main line.  Then set the P42 up to lead, come out and pick up the two Chargers and go back against the train?

But hey, let's give ATK the benefit of the doubt, and the MU receptacle on the front of the Charger is messed up?  Then we have to cut the Chargers in the middle, and set the damaged unit against the train, then couple the P42 to the East facing Charger, and we have two powered units, and all is well.

So, the P42 can't lead, and the front Charger receptacle is beaten up, but we have an AC44 of some kind on the point, which is PLENTY of yank to get #5 over Donner.
G

That sucks, fairly new unit isn’t it? Nice video Brian, guess I won’t see one or both of the new units on the return trip.

Nathan

Posted from iPhone



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/21/20 18:39 by atsf121.

the time to switch the units around, the crew may have been on duty about the time the wreck happened, they just wanted to get the train to  EMY

Not all of the P42's are equipped with the almighty PTC!

Not a lot of snow on the ground at Soda Springs.  In the SF Bay Area, there has been exactly ZERO precipitation throughout ALL of February so far.

Pig-Mauler Wrote:
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> Not all of the P42's are equipped with the
> almighty PTC!

That's interesting, didn't Amtrak brag just recently that all of their locomotives and cab cars were PTC equipped?

Hey, great photo, I like it.
I like seeing the lead unit in Overland Route colors - the City of SF is not forgotten.

Many do not have PTC and are used as trailing units.

atsf121 Wrote:
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> That sucks, fairly new unit isn’t it? Nice
> video BoilingMan, guess I won’t see one or both
> of the new units on the return trip.
>
> Nathan
>
> Posted from iPhone

Actually, Walstib posted this. I initially thought the same thing & thought to myself “that’s odd, Boilingman doesn’t usually do videos” before I double checked.

Correct- not my post! A bit of irony, that- I’m down in Walstib’s turf, and he’s in mine.
I missed all of this, I’m down in Santa Barbara for a few days (posted SP Coast bridge photos on Western page last night that I took on the way down). I’m ticketed on #14 Monday, should be back on The Hill Tuesday.
SR

And, no, no, I don’t do videos. I’m strictly 2 dimensional, and I pretty much have my hands full with THAT!

Oh, and as to why the UP unit on the point: that unit was NEEDED to move the train to Sparks- once there, they surely weren’t going to further delay the train further by switching units around just to get the P-42 leading... just Go!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/21/20 01:01 by BoilingMan.

Sorry Brian and BoilingMan, I got confused jumping between posts! Mea culpa!

Posted from iPhone