Train crashed into platform at Hoboken Terminal

cody said:

I thought that the newscasts yesterday said that the conductor was in the last car, not the first. (They can't turn the trains around in the Hoboken station since there's no roundhouse, so the engine can be at the back of the train as they come into the station and at the front of the train as they leave) - so, I wasn't surprised that the conductor wasn't badly hurt, since he was not located at the main point of impact.

Conductors take tickets. Engineers drive the train. So, it's fine if the Conductor is in the back, as long as the engineer is in the front.

How can you drive the train from the last car? You can't see anything.

kthnry said:

How can you drive the train from the last car? You can't see anything.

I've seen them do this. If the signal is far back enough from a track switch (or whatever hazard), it should be possible. As @FilmCarp hinted, there is no steering of a train, only speed control with a throttle and brake. I'm pretty sure they don't do this on commuter lines in the NYC area.

Apparently not.

FilmCarp said:

I'd like to be in charge of steering a train. Easiest job ever.

FilmCarp said:
I'd like to be in charge of steering a train. Easiest job ever.

yahooyahoo said:

Apparently not.

No, you misunderstand. Driving a car involves speed control (with throttle and brake) and direction control (with a steering wheel). Trains have only speed control. Switches on the tracks control direction, and they are not controlled by a train's engineer. There is no steering. Therefore, the collision did not occur as a result of bad steering.

Tom_Reingold said:

kthnry said:

How can you drive the train from the last car? You can't see anything.

I've seen them do this. If the signal is far back enough from a track switch (or whatever hazard), it should be possible. As @FilmCarp hinted, there is no steering of a train, only speed control with a throttle and brake. I'm pretty sure they don't do this on commuter lines in the NYC area.

But how do you see if there's something on the tracks? Do they have cameras?

The engineer rides in a small compartment in the front car. S/he can see what is in front of the train. Power on the section of the track by Hoboken is provided by overhead wires.

kthnry said:

But how do you see if there's something on the tracks? Do they have cameras?

I don't really know, but I suppose it varies by train. Some trains take miles to stop. They can't stop for unexpected hazards, and ideally, access to the tracks is limited by fences. To be clear, we are not talking about trains in this area.

Tom_Reingold said:

kthnry said:

But how do you see if there's something on the tracks? Do they have cameras?

I don't really know, but I suppose it varies by train. Some trains take miles to stop. They can't stop for unexpected hazards, and ideally, access to the tracks is limited by fences. To be clear, we are not talking about trains in this area.

The engineer DOES NOT "drive" the train from the back. As many have posted here, if the engine is in the back in push mode, the Engineer occupies a small operating compartment in a normal-looking car at the front of the train. No cameras, direct line of sight.