Based on personal experience, I absolutely disagree about gyro lights being
preferable to properly installed ditch lights. I rode the BC Rail Budd cars
at night when they still had exactly the same gyro light as was installed on
the CPR Budds. If I were an engineman, I'd much prefer the ditch lights,
especially if it was the six-light arrangement BC Rail had. That would be
most especially the case in the mountains. The BCR ditch light arrangement
was awesome, especially in those tight curves along Howe Sound. When it
comes to 'what's better' ... I think it quickly becomes a matter of personal
preferences in these sorts of issues.
If I remember correctly, gyra lights or whatever they were, on the CPR Budd
cars got their first CPR start on the southern BC run between Nelson, BC,
and Vancouver, BC. That was in part because of the bad terrain and because
of the bombings of CPR track, bridges and structures carried out by the Sons
of Freedom. That was 1958, three years after the Canadian.
Joe Smuin
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Ironically, it was a derailment involving one or more fatalities on our
Thompson Sub that set the wheels in motion to equip and require ditch lights
on all frt trains throughout the continent, and the current FRA regulation
(law). IMO, based on substantial experience, that they needed only to
expand the use of gyro lights.
And, FWIW, it isn't prudent to rely on train registers at / from
intermediate stations for the purpose of eng consists because in many if not
most such cases only the leading unit is recorded (registered). Train
registers at terminal stations USUALLY have complete eng consists; a notable
exception being trains with so many units as to render inadequate space to
register them all -- a daily occurrence [at one time] in the Montreal area
where some of our RDC commuter trains consisted of nine or more units.
VRP
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