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The Franklin Yard is a beehive of activity and a great
place to railfan!
Much of the following discussion can be obtained in the
following two files, available for downloading:
Information about Franklin Yard:
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The yard has eight classification tracks, three A/D tracks,
a double-ended through track to the engine service facility, and a caboose
track.
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The drill track will hold all cars from the largest
classification track.
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The A/D tracks are all double-ended. Trains arriving
from either direction can enter any A/D track.
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The caboose track can be accessed from either end to reach
cabooses.
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The classification tracks and A/D tracks are worked only
from the east end.
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After arrival to the A/D tracks, the train's power goes to
the service facility for fuel while their train is worked by the yard
switcher.
Planning Your Work
Trains arrive in your yard as directed by the dispatcher,
generally in the order shown on the Train Summary Sheet. On the sheet,
numbered trains come into the yard. Symbol freights (ZBF, SLD, etc.)
do not come into Franklin Yard.
If the A/D tracks are full, and the Dispatcher wants to
bring another train into the yard, request that he hold the trains at
Boonville (for eastbound trains) or Mokane (or westbound). Otherwise
the single track approaches to the yard will block any through traffic.
Briefly, the Franklin Yard Yardmaster's duties
include:
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Make up the local jobs:
- Westinghouse Local (out and back)
- St. Charles Turn (out one day, back the next day)
- Columbia Local (out and back)
- Boonville Local (out and back)
- New Franklin Switcher (local New Franklin Industries)
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Work the incoming trains, pulling 'shorts' (cars destined
for on-layout industries), and filling with appropriate east or westbound
cars.
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If you get all the work completed, you can then work the
local industries as the Engineer/Footboard Yardmaster of the New Franklin
Switcher.
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General Comments about Franklin Yard
Franklin Yard is
usually operated by a single Yardmaster/switcher. The yard can be worked as
separate Yardmaster and Yard Switcher positions if plenty of operators are
available. The Franklin Yard jobs assist trains that stop in the yard (the
numbered trains) with set-outs and pick-ups, build originating trains such as
the locals and outbound transfers, and break down terminating trains.
The Franklin Yard is responsible for making up the locals during an
operating session. Some locals may be pre-built from a previous session, but
new locals can be built and a crew called when a sufficient number of cars are
available for the given destination. If a local is out, the yard can is
encouraged to begin building “tomorrow’s” local if they have time.
Although the
procedures will vary based on traffic flows, the following tasks are typical,
divided into work with through and terminating traffic, and originating
traffic.
Through and inbound
trains
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Break down inbound Parsons transfer
(train 466) |
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Retrieve inbound “shorts” from Numbered
freights (101, 102, 103 and 104). Fill trains with eastbound longs to
capacity |
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Assist the autorack trains (451 and 455)
with engine service. Check trains for any shorts. Fill to capacity with
westbound longs |
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Assist the Klipper (122) and the Komet
(121) with engine service. Check trains for any shorts. Fill to capacity
with appropriate direction longs. |
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Break down shorts from all freights |
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Break down returning locals
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Trains originating in Franklin Yard
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Make up Columbia Local (COL). Push COL
to A/D tracks when sufficient cars have been assembled, add caboose and call
dispatcher for a crew |
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Make up Westinghouse Local (WES). Push
WES to A/D tracks when sufficient cars have been assembled, add caboose and
call dispatcher for a crew |
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Make up Boonville (BVL). Push BVL to A/D
tracks when sufficient cars have been assembled, add caboose and call
dispatcher for a crew |
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Assemble cars for St. Charles Local (SCL).
SCL is in near-continuous operation, and usually arrives in FY, makes a crew
change, and goes back out. Push SCL cars to A/D tracks when sufficient cars
have been assembled and the crew is back in FY, add caboose and call for the
crew. |
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As needed, build haulers to clear yards
of "long traffic":
Eastbound Franklin Yard to Baden
Westbound Franklin Yard to Parsons
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Blocking local trains
Currently five locals
originate at Franklin Yard:
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Boonville Local (including the UP
interchange) |
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St. Charles Local (serves Mokane,
Rhineland, and St. Charles, including the NS interchange) |
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Columbia Local |
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Westinghouse Local |
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New Franklin Industrial Park Switcher |
In addition to the
locals, the yard can build “Haulers” to clear the yard of “long traffic” (cars
destined for off-layout locations).
The westbound trains
get “offline” cars tagged onto their caboose end and sent out without specific
blocking; all the cars are headed in the same off-layout direction and we
assume they will be classified at Parsons, Kansas or in another yard
elsewhere. The eastbound trains receive the same treatment, with the
exception of cars to be forwarded to Conrail. “Conrails” should be grouped
together where possible, and will be set out as a block and expeditiously
forwarded at Baden Yard in St. Louis.
The East and West
Haulers assembled at Franklin Yard get blocking identical to the through
trains: no blocking for the westbound hauler and group the “Conrails”
together for the eastbound hauler.
For the locals
assembled in Franklin Yard, blocking instructions are shown below, listed
left-to-right from the west end of the train to the front. The Boonville
Local travels westbound out of Franklin yard, so the caboose will be on the
right side of the train. The other locals (WES, SCL, COL, NFIP Switcher)
travel east out of Franklin Yard, and their cabooses will be on the train’s
left end.
St. Charles Local
(SCL) is blocked to work the
South Siding first
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1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
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Caboose |
Tavern Rock |
Team
Track |
ACF
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NS
Interchange cars |
Engine |
Boonville Local
(BVL) is blocked to work the Interchange Track first
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1 |
2 |
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Engine |
UP
Interchange |
MKT
south of track industries |
Caboose |
Columbia Local
(COL) is blocked to work Lana Sand and Gravel first, then Quaker Oats and the
other industries
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1 |
2 |
3 |
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Caboose |
Lana
Sand and Gravel |
All
other
Columbia
Industries |
Quaker Oats |
Engine |
Westinghouse Local
(WES) is blocked to drop the non-spots first
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1 |
2 |
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Caboose |
Non-spots
(cars without
spot cards) |
Cars
to be spotted |
Engine |
New Franklin Industrial Park Switcher
(NFIP) is blocked to drop the west industries first
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1 |
2 |
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Caboose |
West
Industries
(New Franklin
Grain & Fertilizer and Duetz-Allis) |
NFIP
Industries |
Engine |
Tips for the Successful Yardmaster
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Become familiar with the
purpose of the two A/D buttons! |
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Read all documentation
relating to the Yardmaster job |
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Call crews for the locals
when you have 6-10 cars |
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You can call for transfer
runs (east to Baden or west to Sedalia) if the number of cars (10 or more)
warrant. |
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The switch for track 8 is
the little toggle on the bottom of the panel |
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Both tracks to the engine
service facility are block 57. The toggles on the panel energize the tracks
and need to be up before assigning a cab to a locomotive at the engine
service facility |
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If you get inundated with
St. Charles cars, run a NS transfer move with NS and St. Charles cars. The
NS transfer will haul cars to the south siding and run light back to FY
light. The cars can be worked by the SCL when he gets there. |
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Call a New Franklin Switch
Job when sufficient cars are delivered. |
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It is generally better for
you to operate the west control panel rather than the road crews. |
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The space around the post
tends to be a bottleneck, especially when the Columbia Local is working.
Don’t be shy about telling railfans to move to another spot.
Rule One
is to relax and HAVE FUN! |
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