Thread: 3.5 mile long train moves from Texas to L.A., CA.

Safety, traffic concerns raised when 3.5-mile-long freight train rolls through L.A. Basin

January 12, 2010 | 1:16 pm

An apparently unprecedented super freight train -- extending some 3½ miles -- rolled through Southern California over the weekend, catching state regulators off guard and prompting concerns about potential safety risks and traffic delays, The Times has learned.

Union Pacific said the train was a test of equipment and ways to improve operating efficiency, but that the company does not have plans to run such trains regularly.

Some officials are worried it may be a harbinger. “I will be asking a lot more questions,â€

Apparently no one was concerned in Texas, New Mexico or Arizona.

I have spent a lot of time at railroad crossings while a train chugs by. With 20 cars, it takes a good 3-5 minutes, and I respect their slow speed. A train that long going 70 mph is insane. How many miles would it take for it to slow down if there were something on the tracks?

Originally Posted by vortex

I have spent a lot of time at railroad crossings while a train chugs by. With 20 cars, it takes a good 3-5 minutes, and I respect their slow speed. A train that long going 70 mph is insane. How many miles would it take for it to slow down if there were something on the tracks?

They can't see far enough ahead to stop, or even slow down, for anything on the tracks.
That's why when I was a kid they taught me to not play on the tracks.

I wouldn't want to be waiting at a crossing but it is interesting in the aspect of how it would do crossing low ridges or hills. You could have half of the train going down hill pulling the other half up hill...like siphoning water.