11-21-2009, 02:50 PM
Puddlejumper Wrote:He had to walk up there. That is where they rode when the train was moving. You see, before the invention of the automatic brake, brakemen rode the roofs of the cars. The length of the train determined how many brakemen you had. When the engineer wanted to stop or slow down he had a whistle signal that would notify the brakemen to apply the brakes. Then they would walk the train, jumping from car to car to apply the brakes.
Russ' reply made me understand... the car brakes were actually used to slow down the train... they had to apply the brakes while the train was moving. Therefore, walking alongside on the ground would not have worked. I was thinking that the individual car brakes were used only to stop the car from rolling after it was stopped. Doh!
So on modern trains, do they vary the air pressure in the brake system so that the brakes in each car help slow the train besides just the engine braking?
Three Foot Rule In Effect At All Times