Emergency Stop Locations

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Joined
Nov 9, 2016
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628
Location
Portsmouth, VA
Should any emergency situation arise on board an Amtrak train, are there designated sections of track at which the trains are permitted to stop for an emergency? Kind of like designated pull-off areas for vehicles along roadways and bridges?

With the road analogy, I realize that vehicles can stop pretty much anywhere along a road for an emergency, unless the road terrain, pavement markings or signage dictate otherwise.

Or does the train stop anywhere along the tracks as quickly as possible?
 
True emergency situation requiring a stop would stop the train as soon as possible, no matter the type.
 
Should any emergency situation arise on board an Amtrak train, are there designated sections of track at which the trains are permitted to stop for an emergency? Kind of like designated pull-off areas for vehicles along roadways and bridges?

With the road analogy, I realize that vehicles can stop pretty much anywhere along a road for an emergency, unless the road terrain, pavement markings or signage dictate otherwise.

Or does the train stop anywhere along the tracks as quickly as possible?
That's a rather wide open question and depends on numerous factors. A train can stop anywhere and anytime with good reason. If someone pulls the emergency brake the train will stop immediately. Depending on the emergency, it might be best to stop immediately, continue to the next scheduled station stop or select an appropriate location in between. When a medical emergency happens it would almost always be quicker to keep moving towards a meeting point than stopping to wait for EMS to come to the train.

As for a designated "pull-off", I wouldn't be at all concerned with taking a siding in an emergency unless ordered by the dispatcher. My priority is the emergency, not other trains needing to get by.
 
All emergencies are different so there is no uniform policy for how to handle them. I can speak for the excursions I work for and our policies. For medical emergencies it depends how serious it is to how we treat it. Now on the trips I work we do have an EMT on board who makes the call.

If the call is made for a patient evac the call then goes to the host railroad dispatch whom arranges the ambulance or helicopter and where it will meet the train. Then our conductor would obviously spot the train in the appropriate spot.

As far as railroad emergencies that is up to the discretion of the operating crew on the head end and the host railroad. And that I can't comment on as that's not my jurisdiction.

As far as gun emergencies we did not have a plan last season. But after the incident last season I would expect that we will have one in place this year.

But the few basic things would be an emergency will always get track priority on everything else out there till resolved.

For instance last year our Manassas runs encountered three heart attacks on one day. One on another train which delayed our arrival back in. Then one passenger boarding our train in the station. And the last one being a member of the crew.

We have implemented new policies as far as AED battery checks and having more then one as well as spread thru out the train.
 
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