Buckeye Yard Memories
by Russ Thompson
Part-5 - Red vs. Green
Another Hump hazard was when a section of the master or group retarders had a problem during rain or light mist. The motors operated on 265 DC. This was achieved by converting the incoming AC main power to DC to operate the motors. When that high power was decreased, the low voltage amperage increased. That current was more significant than the electric chair. Sometimes an arc from the contacts in the control panels by the retarders looked more like a welder than a motor arcing.
As time goes on, what will happen to any kind of rail yard as we know it today? In the early days of railroading, a train would consist of 10 or 12 cars. Many of us grew up in an era where 85 to 120 cars in a train were normal. With today's technology, these trains can be doubled or tripled in length, with remote control power in the middle. When building a train today, there are very few yards or sidings long enough to construct it, or to relieve it. Timed railroading of stacked trains can leave the east coast, and go straight through to the west coast with only crew changes and refueling.
Many former local runs are now given to trucks to bring the containers to a location, place them on a rail car, and deliver 3000 miles away by train, conserving much fuel.
In short, even today’s big yards will probably be closed within the next 10 to 15 years due to their lack of length. Once technology catches up with the railroads, trains will be bigger, heavier, and even longer. What we see as todays big trains will only be seen on The History Channel.
When you think about it, Buckeye also was a melting pot. For years before it was built, the Pennsylvania Railroad and New York Central were rivals at almost every turn, whether it be in operations or motive power, yet in just a few short years the two were merged into one location in Columbus. While crews ran their normal routes, many were housed together during their breaks between runs. Think of two NFL teams, playing on the same field against each other, yet staying together afterward.
This writer saw this first hand, as most of the family was NYC, but my father was PRR. Family gatherings began friendly, but if the subject of railroads came up, look out! Red Bastards and Green Weenies flew! Thank God for a grandmother who quickly settled down both sides, even if she was a NYC employee for a short time!
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