[Magdalen] Derailment, Please Pray

[Jim Guthrie]

Chad writes:

>Reports now in say the train was going 100 mph through the Frankford rail yards
>where the speed limit is 50. Looks like it jumped the tracks on a fairly sharp
>curve.

If they say it was going through the "Frankford Rail Yards" you can be sure they
are clueless and making stuff up as they go along. There are no "Frankford
Rail yards" along that line; there haven’t been any anywhere in 40 years.

It will be interesting to find out what the engineer was thinking approaching
that curve. And remain skeptical of reports not mentioning the new locomotive,
given the history.

BTW -- another sign of cluelessness appeared in the NY Times: “But conductors 
are required to proceed at reduced speeds in urban and residential areas, like 
where the derailment occurred.” Wrong on both counts -- conductors don't operate 
trains and there's no rule on reducing speed in "urban residential areas." Even 
the Times makes stuff up.

would be reporting that says the "conductor" runs the train, as in the NY Times 
coverage.\ today which included the line: "

100 mph (or more) is normative on the Corridor. Once upon a time (until the end
of Penn Central) there was a branch going south off the other end of the curve--
left over from the days when cities wouldn’t let railroads cross them so one
detrained in South Philly, the worked across city streets to get to North
Philadelphia for the next leg of one's trip.

In those days, railroads were built to a variety of gauges as well -- so
connecting them was also thought impossible.

Obviously, that changed as time went on (but anyone who talks about rail gauges
matching Roman wheel gauges  is simply parroting internet mythology.

Cheers,
Jim