Freight train crew questions

[RobertInOntario]

What has been sacrificed is the speed of doing something at the back of the train. A train going into a siding has to leave the conductor behind to restore the switch and then he has to walk up to the front end again to operate the other switch.
I think the GO trains (push-pull commuters in Toronto) have a crew of 4. In push mode there is an engineer, a second person in the loco, a conductor and a trainman who operates the doors. (At least it was 5 years ago when I rode them.)

Thanks, folks ... this is really interesting and I've wondered about many of these things.

I sure hope that there will always be trains crews of some sort, for the reasons pointed out above. Some Toronto City Councilors have also advocated crew-free, automated subway trains, saying that the technology is available (already used elsewhere) and that the subway trains could be safely operated that way. Again, I don't like this idea.

I've also wondered about size and roles of the staff on our GO Trains. My sons & I occasionally ride them into downtown Toronto and also watch them around the city. Usually, when they are in the "push" mode, I can see the driver in outgoing car but seldom ever see any crew in the diesel at the end of the train ... but I understand that there is an operator there.

Thanks again for this helpful info!

Rob