bnsf crew change points bnsf crew change points

"I honestly hope that this isn't going to be the new normal because people are walking out faster than we can hire them on," said Goodson. Usually, the two crew districts that abutted became one double-ended district. The Southern Transcon has been continually enhanced to accommodate the evolving needs of freight and passenger rail. Back to CP for a moment, Calgary-Edmonton, AB is broken into two Sub's.,Red Deer and Leduc, totaling about 180 miles. To participate you must either login or register for an account. Railroads & Locomotives Maps BNSF Railway crew districts. Back in my road days, when we'd end up at a hotel after a very long and tiring trip, and some guy who was obviously an over-eager railfan would see us and ask us if we were railroaders, we'd always answer: NOPE! Official site: BNSF.COM I'd wonder if the average speed of the slowest Milwaukee freights on the Trans-Missouri Division during the first generation diesel era would have been more like 25 MPH as opposed to 12.5 MPH. Hugh Cook is Wyoming Public Radio's Northeast Reporter, based in Gillette. I can remember when the "featherbedding" talk began, about needing to keep crews in the trains longer because the trains were faster and did they really need three men in the cab and two in the rear. "However, just last week, I sat down in Guernsey for 27 hours in the hotel waiting to come home.". The 100 mile day was based on how far you would travel in 8 hours at a speed of 12.5 mph. A train in the long pool uses one less crew than if it goes to the short pool. While they have been built to provide lodging for AFHT crews, they are open to the public as well. ), Yes BNSF uses helpers if they cant meet the UP HP per Tonrequirements. Get great snapshots of railroading history in Art Petersons newest book. (200+ miles?). Some railroads do have expanded crew districts. Thanks in advance for your help. Subscribers, sign in to access exclusive content. Staying at one of the lodging motels can be interesting, but I wouldnt suggest being too inquiring these days. > * BNSF/UP: Denver to Winter Park (Does BNSF use helpers? --Ken Stitzel (k@fc.hp.com)Learning Products Engineer (tech writer with functional enhancements), Hewlett-Packard Company (a pretty cool company to work for), Fort Collins, Colorado, USA (somewhere east of Masonville), (Opinions stated herein are provided without warranty and are not, representative of official or unofficial HP policy on shootercrew changes. ;-), --Kirk PettyABC Sign Productskpe@psd.k12.co.uskpe@abcsignproducts.comhttp://www.abcsignproducts.com ____________________________ __________________________ ___/oo|====~~~~~~~~~~~########|| |########~~~~~~~~~~====|oo\____ I_|______UNION PACIFIC__=_=_=_=|_I I_|______UNION PACIFIC___|_____|_I `-'O==O==O`-------------'O==O==O`-'~`-'O==O==O`-------------'O==O==O`-, Either email addresses are anonymous for this group or you need the view member email addresses permission to view the original message. The hotel provides transportation for thecrews and for passengers who come in or go out of the station in Renssalaer, and it is possible to ride in a van with the railroad employees. Learn more about what it means to do business with BNSF and the process we use for working with suppliers. EDIT: To answer the original poster's question I checked with what limited ressources I have, and found the following CP (ex Soo Line) crew change points in his part of the world. Most of those are of a standard BNSF design; the center piece, providing 23 feet, 6 inches of clearance over the lower main line, is an 87 four-girden deck-plate steel span. Since crews are usually pooled on a first-in, first-out basis, everyone still has the same opportunity to rack up miles and thus pay. In 1992, Santa Fe began a decades-long project to double-track the 512 miles of the route that remained single-tracked. Our vision is to realize BNSF's tremendous potential by providing transportation services that consistently meet our customers expectations. Learn more about how the Amarillo project enhances the entire Southern Transcon in this video: Please subscribe to receive occasional email newsletters keeping you in the loop about BNSF and customized for where you live. Allan_Love_Jr, Aug 26, 2007 #1. "The cutoff made traversing New Mexico with freight easier by eliminating the steep grades of the Raton Pass from the route and the use of extra locomotive power to make the trip.". Amtrak runs Whitefish to Havre, but I think all freights recrew at Shelby, MT, I think the other crew change is at Wolf Point, MTrather than Glasgow, MT. But apart from the policy, she said she loves her job. I've searched the Web and have came up with a few locations for the BNSF. Then run pools (through Clinton) to Missouri Valley (hot intermodals only), to Boone (everything else), and pools to Des Moines and Mason City. Join Today! http://www.oaktreeinn.com/Hotels is a current list of hotels. It's not just bad news for workers. It just affects the waythe train crew's pay is calculated. Thanks again,everyone! Crew Change Points : Needles, Winslow Yards: Needles, Winslow Junctions @ West Williams, Phoenix Sub (BNSF) MP 375.0 Highest point: 7,322 ft @ Arizona Divide. In older times, it would take much longer as the trains were slower. The only BNSF jobs @ Kingman is a daytime rd swtchr followed by a afternoon one. Thanks for joining us! Serving Carrier Reciprocal Switch Inquiry. 1,907 177 39. The Clinton-Mo Valleylong poolhandles mostly intermodal trains. "A Train is a Place Going Somewhere" CP Rail Public Timetable. This is part one of a video I made on my tour 8 across the country 2018 stopping in Needles California at the BNSF train yard to catch one of the many trains. (At least it was when I was there last week), Sharon Springs, Kansas (It used to be Oakley), > * Denver south: Pueblo> * Denver west: Bond, then Grand Junction> * Denver north: Cheyenne> * Pueblo south: same as BNSF, presumably. I find it ironic that the MILW expandend some of their districts just as deferredmaintenance caused speeds to drop. BNSF Crew Change Locations In order to set up activities for the BNSF and other railroads, I can't recall anyone putting out any kind of a list for where crew changes take place. "The project in Amarillo as well as the other projects between Southern California and Chicago will help all traffic types along the route flow more freely and help prevent congestion.". When crews are tight on either pool at either end, they use crews out of either pool. Ideally, a crew goes on duty, gets its paperwork, gets out of the yard, reaches its destination, and ties up comfortably within the maximum 12 hours on duty allowed by the federal hours-of-service law. While they have been built to provide lodging for AFHT crews, they are open to the public as well. I can remember when the "featherbedding" talk began, about needing to keep crews in the trains longer because the trains were faster and did they really need three men in the cab and two in the rear. Long pools for some runs where Intermodals can skip crew changes, but slower freights can't. Amarillo is a crew change point, so there is a lot of activity along the city's rail lines. "The attendance policy we had in the past, it would allow basically any person to take two weekend days and five weekdays per month off," he explained. You can rely on BNSFs team of experts to help educate you on the benefits of incorporating our rail network into your supply chain. Here are> some places I know they run helpers at least occassionally:> > * BNSF/UP: Denver to Palmer Lake. But completing the historic route wasn't the last piece of the puzzle. from Calgary to Medicine Hat, AB, created in 1910. Note that the Puget Sound Extension and the WP were built in the 1905-1910 time frame and train speeds were up significantly from 30 to 40 years earlier. 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Anyone on the seniority district can work the pool, assumingthey have the seniority. * Denver west (UP trackage rights): do they go all the way to Grand Junction or do they change at Bond again like UP does? No, I think Rawlins is still very much used for everything but"shooters" (hotshots), which go all the way to Green River without achange. myemployer, any other railroad, company, or person. Highlighting our commitment to safety, service, innovation, people, communities and our heritage. I'm sure that longer crew districts in other places are coming Our community is FREE to join. If I recall correctly, the Miles City to Harlowtown run was one crew district which works out to 215 miles. "With over 17 million intermodal loads transported by rail annually, BNSF's Southern Transcon is one of several key routes for the movement of goods from Southern California to Chicago," said Joni Casey, president and CEO, Intermodal Association of North America. The Milwaukee Road in the 1970s combined orchanged some crew districts, both on the Puget Sound extension and elsewhere. The project in Amarillo was completed in early September. Many times after the adoptionof the 130 mile day, the terminals didn't change. ), > * Cheyenne east: North Platte> * Cheyenne west: Rawlins (Green River for hotshots? They seem to use the Williard crews for the long distance intermodals (from east coast) and Williards for the manifests and commodity trains. Since 2001, BNSF has eliminated districts running to Eugene, Ore., Helena, Mont., Quanah, Texas, Mobile, Ala., and International Falls, Minn. Harvey and Enderlin, ND; Glenwood, Thief River Falls, and Minneapolis/St. We didn't linger too long for obvious reasons. We offer a library of downloadable files, forums to exchanges messages, news and more. Like what's going on for June, when the KO Sub between Minot and Fargo isundergoing MoWwork, some trains will re-route over the Devils Lake Sub to Grand Forks (change crews at DL Switch) and then run down the Hillsboro Sub into Fargo By signing up you may also receive occasional reader surveys and special offers from Trains magazine.Please view our, Get our weekly newsletter delivered to your inbox. The Milwaukee Road in the 1970s combined orchanged some crew districts, both on the Puget Sound extension and elsewhere. BNSF crews frequently change crews here at Eola yard in Aurora, IL. So shovel the coal, let this rattler roll. In February, BNSF instituted an attendance policy known as Hi-Viz, which drew immediate criticism from employees and railroad unions. Goodson said that if employees work on the weekends, they can earn a single point to add to their total. At BNSF, we are committed to providing you the information you need to make informed transportation decisions. The reason why so many (former complainers included) drive to workit, it's set up to work about 8 round trips per month and pays good. Also Portal, ND and Noyes, MN, but that is because thay are also Country change points(Canada/US border). LA / Barstow/ Needles / Seligman? It has brought morale down to an all-time low.". The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota. Some railroaders have said the policy incentivizes employees to work while sick or tired, something that Goodson can very much relate to. Find the right person to help you with your retirement benefit questions, including health insurance, the Employee Assistance Program and payroll. This Map of the Month appeared in theMay 2004 issue of Trains magazine. In a perfect world, a crew-district is a days work. But crew change locations make a logical place to start and end activities. Thanks in advance for your help.Ken Stitzel wrote: You do not have permission to delete messages in this group. Terms Of Use | Notice at Collection | Privacy | 2022 BNSF Railway Company. Our community is FREE to join. For some reason, I always thought crew change points were determined by how long it took to get there. Which meant that many crewsmight not be able to make the far treminal on their HOS. Each employee begins with 30 points for a career, Knutson said. In days past, the away terminal was often a remote hamlet in between two cities. Curiosity about Melstone got to me and found out that it now has a population of 96, down from 136 in 2000. At times they will change within minutes of stopping at the "crosswalk" where employees cross the mainline, and at other times the incoming crew will "tie down" their train on the main-line and the train will wait for literally hours on the main for the outgoing (new) crew. The average daily rate while in training as a new hire conductor will be approximately $221 per day, or $27.68 per hour (based on . This was a 4-mile, single-track chokepoint until March 2011, when the railroad completed a 30-month, $85 million effort to push through a second track. A fourth-generation Northeast Wyoming native, Hugh joined Wyoming Public Media in October 2021 after studying and working abroad and in Washington, D.C. for the late Senator Mike Enzi. A couple less employees to receive benefits. Fully responsible for all aspects of the North American operation including profit and loss, contract negotiation, customer retention, business development, sales, marketing, process management,. The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota. "We have had a lot of people resign, quit working, and not just Gillette, across the system, because they went and found other jobs. They can be added if employees work during periods that are more in demand. LIONS with CAMERAS. I believe it was cptrainman of the "Hunter, . If an employee exhausts all of their points, they can be terminated. The dispatchers were forced to make better meets, yardmasters to get trains out of the yards better and so on. In order to get a minimum speed of 12 or so MPH on the 0.5% ruling grades, the locomotives should have been able to maintain 25 or more MPH on level track, hence my wondering about 200 mile crew changes. "We used to be able to take five weekdays, two weekend days a month off at our discretion and since the implementation of the Hi-Viz policy," she explained. LION *knows* that Mandan is a crew change point, but Dickinson is so no longer, and the next crew change point is Glendive, MT. Knutson said he thinks the policy was implemented for several reasons. Same with RR'ers in TEY service. Harvey and Enderlin, ND; Glenwood, Thief River Falls, and Minneapolis/St. LEARN MORE Tribal Relations. We are committed to proactively identify, attract and develop long-term partnerships with certified minority, woman and veteran-owned and small disadvantaged businesses, while fulfilling BNSF Vision and Values. Other changes on the PCE were Alberton, MT to St. Maries, ID and St. Maries, ID to Othello, WA. Frisco always changed freight crews at Newburg, MO but my grandpa as passenger conductor changed at Monett, MO, which was farther down the line. Get in touch with us using the Media Contacts list on the left. Lately, they are alsohandling most of the auto racks and one Q manifest. The home terminal is the place where the crew normally goes to work; usually, its where the crew members live. Would this be the right list for the Transcon? Classic Railroad Scenes: Railroads at Work. "We think those things are critical to protect the velocity and safety of our network," she says. BNSF crews frequently change crews here at Eola yard in Aurora, IL. In order to get a minimum speed of 12 or so MPH on the 0.5% ruling grades, the locomotives should have been able to maintain 25 or more MPH on level track, hence my wondering about 200 mile crew changes. (Some of these are the same ones who always complained about the long pool because the LP crewsusually get priority to get over the road, no matter what type of train they are on, so they usually go around you.). BNSF said more than 50 percent of train crew employees work less than 40 hours on average. I thought I read that UP phased out Rawlins, and all trains go throughto Green River from Cheyenne. If anybody could help me out, that would be awesome. Even a 25 MPH scheduled speed would result in an 8 hour trip. For 170 years, BNSF Railway has been an essential connector safely and efficiently transporting freight from point A to point B. BNSF Railway, Monon Route passenger trains photo gallery. Currently, it's possible to make Clinton and tie up within 6 hours on duty, on a coal train no less. Extra lanes mean traffic flows better. Would this be the right list for the Transcon? Which meant that many crewsmight not be able to make the far treminal on their HOS. Getting people and freight between Southern California and Chicago once took months, weeks or even years. As trains have become faster, many intermediate terminals have been dissolved, with the trains running through. BNSF modified their policy on June 1. Sometimes it would take the the full 16 hours on the HOS to make the run. No, they never had aProviso- Boone long pool. She said the policy isn't compassionate toward employees. I threw inFremont and Boone in case he's driving that way, or in case wanderlusttakes him east the same way my "as long as I'm in the neighborhood"reasoning got me to Albuquerque when I'd only planned on going as farsouthwest as Denver. If this is your first visit, welcome to TrainSim.Com! Zug, you guys must have really been tired. I have to look thru some stuff, but I think they used to change at Melstone, MT. Here is what I think I know about some of the crew districts andhelper districts in and around Colorado. About ten years ago the railroad proposed moving almost everyone from Boone to Rochelle. To clarify, Chicago to North La Crosse is one district, and Galesburg to North La, > To clarify, Chicago to North La Crosse is one. Wondering where the crew change points are on the BNSF from Chicago to the Twin Cities on the Aurora and St. Croix Subs? Learn more about our trains, how we operate them, and the variety of railcars we haul, in the informative BNSF Virtual Train Tour. Or, did they get rid of it because there was too much congestion / delays east of Clinton? Note that the Puget Sound Extension and the WP were built in the 1905-1910 time frame and train speeds were up significantly from 30 to 40 years earlier. Several projects are currently underway to further expand the route's efficiency by adding triple- and even quadruple-track long stretches of the busiest parts of the Transcon. BNSF Railway's first-in-the-industry Tribal Relations program seeks to build and strengthen ties . Curiosity about Melstone got to me and found out that it now has a population of 96, down from 136 in 2000. . If going via the old C&S/FW&D its Trinidad, Texline, Amarillo,then Wichita Falls.If going via C&S to Trinidad and then ATSF it would be aC&S crew to Trinidad, then ATSF crew to Raton then Albuquerque. Lowest Point : 456 ft @ Topock, AZ. If. From the materials that help create products people use every day to the actual finished products, our consistent and cost-effective service takes products of any size to customers when and where they need them. She also said some of the claims that BNSF is making, especially in regard to working hours, time off, and leave, are misleading. But when the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway established what became known as the Southern Transcon route in the 1880s, parts of the Southwest were now accessible with relative ease. - Erik. The pandemic caused people to be out sick more often causing labor shortages. Melstone was almost certainly a crew change location in that it was almost exactly halfway between Harlow and Miles, along with being the only spot between Roundup and Miles City with more than two parallel tracks. )* UP east from Grand Junction??? Then Alliance, NE? Same with RR'ers in TEY service. I think the Miles City to Harlowton run was one of them. Although you may have to be a subscriber to access it, there is a map of BNSF crew districts in the Trains'Railroad Reference section under railroad maps. I'm a teetotaler, so that thought is never on my mind. We see this very often here. Back when there were foru passenger trains each way on the division,except for the City of New Orleans, passenger train crews changed southbound (the City train crews changed northbound), ran to New Orleans (Canton), then ran through McComb to Canton (New Orleans), and then back to McComb, covering 400 miles in 24 hours (and then had 24 hours off). BNSF doesnt just move freight; we connect with people and communities along the way. (Except when that train gets too long, then it goes back to the short pool.) LION *knows* that Mandan is a crew change point, but Dickinson is so no longer, and the next crew change point is Glendive, MT. At the time we were having trouble going from Boone to Clinton in 12 hours. Others are where two adjacent crew districts were merged into one, with the crews running through the former change point between the two on all, or most trains. Dickinson crews still run locals between New Salem and Beach including the ever growing rail hub of RICHARDTON ND. All in all, it is an interesting aspect to the industry. Re: BNSF Crew Change Points Author: BN7149 The railroad is run as an East-West route. from Calgary to Medicine Hat, AB, created in 1910. "I would love to get whoever made this policy happen or said okay to it to come and join us for a week on how it is day to day," she urged. They seem to use the Williard crews for the long distance intermodals (from east coast) and Williards for the manifests and commodity trains. This doesn't mean that runs were only 100 miles then or 130 miles now. At times they will change within minutes of stopping at the "crosswalk" where employees cross the mainline, and at other times the incoming crew will "tie down" their train on the main-line and the train will wait for literally hours on the main for the outgoing (new) crew. Learn how easy it is to become a BNSF customer. But I hear it is coming. At BNSF, nothing is more important than safety. Opposition is mounting among workers at freight railroad BNSF to a new points-based attendance policy which management has unilaterally implemented. (Some of these are the same ones who always complained about the long pool because the LP crewsusually get priority to get over the road, no matter what type of train they are on, so they usually go around you.). It would mark a dramatic change to a labor contract that covers about 3,000 workers, or 60 percent of the BNSF system. Five years ago, a conductor on the Southwest Chief initiated a conversation with me when, as I was standing in the aisle outside the room my wife and I occupied, she ran into my arms. Only the Clinton - Missouri Valley long pool. Seems I recall a map in trains a while back showing this. 16. ), --Ken Stitzel (k@fc.hp.com)Learning Products Engineer (tech writer with functional enhancements)Hewlett-Packard Company (a pretty cool company to work for) Fort Collins, Colorado, USA (Opinions stated herein are provided without warranty and are not representative of official or unofficial HP policy on crew/helperhelp. Men in chain gang freightservice preferred being called in McCombfor a run to Gwin, since it was farther than a run to New Orleans. jeffhergert BNSF moves about a third of all intermodal volume in North America. Welcome to the BNSF Railway at Edgemont South Dakota website. It takes a lot of workers to keep the railroad running efficiently. Many times after the adoptionof the 130 mile day, the terminals didn't change. myemployer, any other railroad, company, or person. And, crew change points were (and still are)not always the same for engine crews and for train crews on the same train. Then Alliance, NE? The crew change point on the South Transcon is Wellington Kan, Amarillo Texas Belen New Mexico Needles California Barstow, California (on some trains) Fresno, California Stockton California--also some trains change crews at Bakersfield, California Maybe others can fill in Dale Smith [ Reply To This Message ] [ Quote ] Date: 09/07/16 19:16 $221/day, with an average annual salary of $70,000 - $82,000. Don't worry, we won't send you too many. To participate you must either login or register for an account. BNSF 1859-345 hump engines. / KC / Ft. Madison / Chicago. Only the Clinton - Missouri Valley long pool. I wish I had asked a trainman how the pay was calculated, since some of the turn arounds were short. Men in chain gang freightservice preferred being called in McCombfor a run to Gwin, since it was farther than a run to New Orleans. Don't know if he's going to range all the way up to PRB coal country or west into Utah. Satellite view on Google maps shows a lot of empty lots in the town and I guess that the population may have been 300 to 500 at its peak. In older times, it would take much longer as the trains were slower. I was wondering about crewchangepoints along the UP and BNSF in the Midwest. Crew changes can happen anywhere of course, but crews do frequently change in Savanna, IL which is the convergence of the C&I line to Chicago and the Barstow Sub south to Galesburg. Find the right person at BNSF to help you. Please have a look here to see what other groups are saying about BNSF Railway. -Ryan [ Reply To This Message ] [ Quote ] Date: 07/18/07 21:48 Good threads on this string. Get updates and special offers via email from Trains.com brands! Someone emailed this info to me. We do not sell train simulator software. Information about the railroad through Flagstaff, Arizona The rail line through Flagstaff is operated by the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF).