Cajohn Pass? Dangerous to trains?

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Guest_Gingee_*

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We will be going through Cajon Pass in the early morning. In trying to find information on it, I saw where it says it can be dangerous due to the steepness going down. Are we going to feel this? Is it that scary? It said something about being dangerous if the conductor does not apply the brakes right.
 
I should mention that we are on the Southwest Chief.
 
Cajon Pass can be dangerous, yes. But so is driving down the Interstate and you come up to a 6% downgrade! :rolleyes:

I find coming down Cajon Pass as interesting! Unless you knew you were going down (or up) Cajon Pass, you might think it was just another hill! It is much more dangerous for a 100 car freight train than for a 7-8 car Amtrak train! :rolleyes:
 
Guest_Gingee_* said:
We will be going through Cajon Pass in the early morning. In trying to find information on it, I saw where it says it can be dangerous due to the steepness going down. Are we going to feel this? Is it that scary? It said something about being dangerous if the conductor does not apply the brakes right.
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It might be if the conductor doesn't apply the brakes :huh: , but the engineer, who is driving the train, has done this many times before and will perform admirably :) .
 
I just saw the forecast through Sunday and it says wind advisories until Sunday with up to 50 mph winds. I don't think I have ever been on a train with those high of winds.
 
Guest_Gingee_* said:
We will be going through Cajon Pass in the early morning. In trying to find information on it, I saw where it says it can be dangerous due to the steepness going down. Are we going to feel this? Is it that scary? It said something about being dangerous if the conductor does not apply the brakes right.
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That applies to long, heavy freight trains, not lighter passenger trains. A heavy freight can get moving so fast downhill that the brakes cannot stop it. On a grade line Cajon, freight trains require some tender, loving care. It's not unlike the difference between a car coming down a steep hill and a loaded dump truck coming down the same hill. You're in the train version of a car. You'll be fine.
 
Thanks PR. I am kind of nervous about especially due to the high winds. Hope it doesn't knock the trains over.

To the others, was it scary when they had the high winds? How long does it take to get out of the pass?
 
Relax and enjoy the ride. According to the condensed profile in the employee timetable, the grade is 2.20%. There are quite a few major climbs at this rate in other parts of the country. Raton and Glorietta are both steeper. BNSF knows a lot about operating on steep grades. The allowed speed limit for pasenger trains varies from 40 to 50 mph on the grade. Does not mean they will not run slower if need be, but they will not run faster. As to high winds and overturning: Don't worry about that one either. there is a lot of freight equipment that is taller than the Superlliners.

Another random though here: There is no need to worry about down hill runaways on high speed railroads. Simply put, with curves large enough to make high speeds possible, on normal grades gravity can not get the train rolling fast enough to go off the curve.
 
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When is the last time there has been an accident involving a runaway passenger train? How about a passenger train being blown over? Shouldn't take some of you nuts long to find the answers.
 
Raton? Is that Raton, New Mexico? If so, we have been through it.

Okay, in comparison, I have taken the New Orleans train from Illinois, Empire from Chicago, Lakeshore Limited (I think from Chicago) and the Texas Eagle.
 
You sound like me Gingee. I'll be on the SWC in two weeks LA to Chi. I've been reading "USA By Rail" and it only mentions a long climb to Cajon Pass with the tracks "reaching more than 3,800 feet at the hightst point, before it starts a slow, twisting 2,743 descent." So that didn't sound too much different to me than some of places we went through on the Sunset Limited...like Vail and Wilcox. Because we were behind schedule coming back on that trip I got to see them in daylight. Not scary to me. Guess we'll be going through Cajon Pass after dark. I've been wondering about Raton Pass, and if it is scary.
 
Well I think it goes through the pass between 4:20 a.m. and 5:30. Not sure when it ends but it is due in San Bernadino at 5:30.
 
If Raton Pass is around Raton, New Mexico, I didn't notice it.
 
Guest_Gingee_* said:
What does Burlington have to do with us?
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They own the tracks. Amtrak owns the train and provides the crews, but the freight companies (BNSF, Union Pacific in the west) own everything else.

You'll be fine. There is 0 reason to worry about coming down the grade.
 
How old are you, Gingee? You sound just like me when I was about 20. Scared of all sorts of things.....strange dogs, driving in the fog, high winds, steep hills, etc. When I was 45, I decided to put all that behind me and took up bungee jumping out of hot air balloons. Scared out of my wits, but did it anyway. Loved it! Then I got cancer and I was scared out of my wits again. Hated it!

But now I'm not scared of anything and I love adventure. I think I have turned into an adrenaline junky. Sit back and enjoy the ride! Please write a trip report when you get back.
 
Well lets say I am over 45. I think I am worrying more as I get older. I didn't even know there was a big mountain like this until I had printed something from the internet on the train and just got around to reading it tonight. Should have left it alone, huh?

Hope your cancer is gone. I know that is scary.
 
Guest_Gingee_* said:
Well lets say I am over 45. I think I am worrying more as I get older. I didn't even know there was a big mountain like this until I had printed something from the internet on the train and just got around to reading it tonight. Should have left it alone, huh?
Hope your cancer is gone. I know that is scary.
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Never been over Cajon Pass by train, but traveled it many times by car. Never had a problem.
 
So is there Internet on the Southwest Chief? Thought maybe you were posting from your phone?
 
Guest_Gingee_* said:
Is the pass the same for cars as trains?
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There is a road close to where the tracks are, but not the road you would normally take. The road we would take is part of the Route 66-I'm not sure how far it is from the tracks, but I remember being able to see them when we would drive through.

We used to camp out there in the desert when I was growing up-long before there were many people living out there.
 
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