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IC Rebuilds Classification Yard I. C. Rebuilds Cla$sification Yard And Installs New System of Control trolled from four towers each of which· handled the retarders and switches in their corresponding areas. Within a few years after the The control of switches is automatic after being original yards at ~'larkham were initiated by push-button in panel at the crest placed in service, a new group ar­ rangement of tracks was developed of the hump, and all of the retarders are con­ for use in yards being installed on trolled by one man in a tower near main lead other roads, the object of which was to reduce the number of retarders, because one retarder on the lead to each group serves to apply final A NEW system of control for pow- the first yards to be equipped with retardation to cars routed to all of er switches and retarders has been car retarders of commercial manu­ the tracks in that group. installed by the Illinois Central in facture. Original installations were Having rendered 23 years service, its southbound classification yard at based on the ladder principle, with the retarders, switch machines, con­ :Markham Yards, located 20 mi. retarders down the hump and the trol machines and rail in the Illinois south of the passenger station at throat leads, as well as on the upper Central southbound yard were due Twelfth Street in Chicago. This end of each classification track. for replacement. A decision was southbound yard, as well as the The southbound yard with its 43 made that the replacement program northbound yard nearby, were built classification tracks, 43 power should include a change from the in 1926, and at that time they were switches, and 72 retarders was con- old ladder-track layout to the more Th~ man in the tower controls the retarders in the entire yard 346 R A I I, W A Y S I G N A l I N G cmd C 0 M M u· N I C A T I 0 N S June, 1950 modern grouping of tracks, as well as a change in grades. About that time - early in 1949 - the General Railway Signal Company, which furnished the switch machines and retarders installed in the south­ bound yard in 1926, announced the development of a new system of control, which was adopted for in­ stallation as a part of the improve­ ments. The Illinois Central has the distinction of being the first road to place such a system in service. Starting in June, 1949, the change­ over to the new track layout, new grades, new retarders with new system of control for power switch, has been gradually made under traffic. As of June 1, 1950, the new system was in service on 35 of the total of 45 tracks. The same system is being installed by the Canadian Pacific in its new yard at :Montreal, which is scheduled to go in service in July. Fewer Retarders The yard as installed in 1926, had At the hump a button is pushed to control switch leading to each yru·d track 7tj retarders totaling 5,022" rail feet, 43 power skate machines, and four intermediate retarder, thereby in­ wiring distribution for power and control machines in four towers. In creasing the rate of acceleration. control circuits, as well as the con­ the rearrangement, two more yard The objective of this is to increase trol system, are all new. tracks were added making a total the running distance between cars With the old arrangement the of 45 tracks, which are arranged in or cuts of cars. men in the four towers each con­ groups, one with five tracks, two In order to minimize the length trolled not only the retarders, but with six~ and four with seven tracks of track taken up by turnouts, lap also the switches in an assigned area each. I~ the new improved yard switch layouts were used as re­ of the yard. One of the features of arrangement, there are 45 power quired. In the previous yard, no the new system, as installed by the switches, 21 retarders with a total of track circuits were in service to pre- Illinois Central, is that the switches 1,683 rail-feet of retardation, as ·vent the operation of a'switch under are normally controlled automatic­ compared with 5,022 rail-feet of re­ a car which would cause a derail­ ally after the control for the route tardation previously in service with ment. Such accidents are prevented for each car or cut of cars has been two less tracks. by detector locking, controlled by initiated by operation of a corres­ In the previous ·layout there was track circuits, as have been installed ponding button. These push-buttons a power-operated skate at the-lower in practically all yards equipped :_one for each of the 45 classifica­ end of each of the 43 yard tracks. with power switches during the past tion tracks-are on a panel in a small These were eliminated. Also in the 20 years. Accordingly, track circuits office at the crest of the hump. As old yard there were two tracks up and electric locking were incorpor­ a car or cut of cars approaches the to the crest and down toward the ated in the new installation at the crest of the hump and is being cut yard so that, on either track, cars Illinois Central southbound yard. off, a man at the hump pushes the could be pushed over the hump to The old retarders, which were of the button which is numbered for the be classified. A portion of one of electric type, were worn beyond re­ track to which this cut is to go, as these tracks was removed. Now all pair, and were, therefore, discarded. shown on the switch list. For the cars are pushed over the crest on The 21 new retarders are also of flrst car of a .. train", as soon as the the one track which is equipped the electric type of a modern de­ button is pushed, a control goes to with a track scale. The second track sign. Some of the switch machines the flrst switch in the route to posi­ with its power switch is used to in the new yard are of a new high­ tion it as required. When the car or route a locomotive around the scale. speed type. These are used where cut of cars enters the detector track This switch is controlled manually the track circuit in advance of the circuit for that switch, controls are from the hump office. switch is short. All switch machines then automatically advanced to the As part of the change-over to are trailable. Most of the old switch next switch in its route. As each suc­ track groups, the grades down the machines were rebuilt and installed ceeding car or cut of cars is pushed incline and through the main leads in the new yard. up to the crest of the hump, the were revised to conform with pres­ operator pushes the button num­ ent-day practices for use· with re­ One Tower In Place of Four bered for the track to which it is tarders as applied to this track ar­ The four old control towers were destined. Controls for switches are rangement. These grades are indi­ removed and one new brick control set up in the same manner as for · cated on the plan herewith. One tower was· constructed along the the preceding car. If the operator change was to make the grade steep­ east side of the main yard lead at a at the crest sees that he has pushed er down the incline as far as the location indicated on the plan. The the wrong button for a car or cut June, 1950 R A I L WAY SIGN .ALI N G and C 0 M M U N I C AT I 0 N S 3.47 lamp immediately ahead of the car. During the_ time that a car is oc­ cupying the track circuit through a switch, a red lamp is lighted in the symbol representing the switch. Thus on his panel, the towerman can see the routes lined and the locations of cars. On this control panel each of the 10 retarder locations is represented by a raised black knob which can be rotated, as indicated by a dial, to control the corresponding retard­ ers to the open position or to any of seven closed positions each giving an increased degree of retardation. The switch list shows whether cars are empty or loaded and if loaded, This retarder serves a group of six tracks the lading, so that the towerman has a fair estimate of the retarda­ tion required, and he rotates the approaching the crest, he can cancel tower is of brick construction, with dial to set up a retarder before a controls by pushing a "cancel" but­ control room 9 ft. by 15 ft. The di­ car approaches it. As the car passes ton. Thus the operations of switches mension from rail level to the floor into the retarder, he watches until to route cars from the hump to their line on the top story is 30 ft. Glare the speed is reduced as required at classification tracks are normally proof plate glass windows are used that location, then he can quickly controlled by this automatic system. on the track side and the two ends release each retarder section by Between the crest of the hump of this operating room.
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