Starting early

We got up early and finished late. Here the crane is lifting a panel of track in place.

The big picture

This is more of a panorama of what we were doing here. More to follow.

What was the bulldozer for?

The bulldozer in the previous post was needed to remove the ballast (rock) from the deck of the bridge. Once the ballast is removed, then new panels of track are put in place.

Heavy Equipment

Sometimes it is necessary to hoist heavy equipment up onto elevated track to aid in removing concrete ties.

Replacing concrete ties

Replacing concrete ties on ballast deck. I was waiting to bond the track when the trackhoe was pulling this section down.

Train meets car

Sometimes the Maintainer is called to the unfortunate side of his job. The train and vehicle collision.

Navigation Lights

When the railroad bridge spans a navigable waterway the Maintainer is responsible for the navigation lights that mark the location of the support piers.

Burning the rail back together

When it is real cold the rail will pull apart at its weakest point. In order for repairs to be made and to put joint bars on the break they have to get diesel soaked cellulose and lay it next to the rail, set fire to it, and burn it back together. Then the Maintainer can put a cadweld bond on.

Undercutter at work

This photo taken in the 1980s shows a machine called an undercutter. Its job is to extract mud from the rock beneath the rails. A chain wraps under the tracks, separates the mud from the rock, and throws the waste to the side (seen above). While removing mud from the rock makes the track firmer, it sometimes pulls up cables which makes the day challenging for a signal maintainer.