Safety is of Greater
Importance Than Time:
Signals on the Buffalo, Rochester and Pittsburgh
by
Stephen J. Hoyle
Railroads run by rule books, and each rule in the book is designed to help ensure safe work practices and operation of trains. The Buffalo, Rochester, and Pittsburgh (BR&P), before its takeover by the Baltimore and Ohio in 1930, used semaphore signals. Approximately 34 pages of their 1915 Book of Rules dealt with signals.
The BR&P had permissive block signals and absolute block signals. These signals had different semaphore blades so train crews could recognize them at a glance. Permissive block signals had yellow blades, with a black stripe and pointed ends; absolute block signals had red blades with a white stripe and square ends. Both types of signals were provided with color lights for low-visibility and nighttime operation.
The BR&P’s rule book contained a set of definitions that applied to their block signal rules. The definitions were generally the same as used in the so-called Standard Code, but some of them were tailored a little to fit the purposes of the railroad. These definitions are listed below:
Block - A length of track of defined limits, the use of which by trains is controlled by block signals.
Block station - A place from which block signals are operated.
Fixed signal - A signal at a fixed location indicating a condition affecting the movement of a train.
Block signal - A fixed signal controlling the use of a block.
Home block signal - A fixed signal at the entrance of a block to control trains entering and suing said block.
Distant block signal - A fixed signal used in connection with a Home (and Advance) block signal to regulate the approach thereto.
Advance Block Signal - A fixed signal used in connection with a Home Block Signal, to subdivide the block in advance.
Block System - A series of consecutive blocks.
Manual Block System - A block system in which the signals are operated manually.
Automatic Block Signal - A block system in which the signals are operated by electric, or other agency, actuated by a train, or by certain conditions affecting the use of a block.
Indicator - A miniature signal located at main track switches to indicate the condition of the block or the approach of a train.
Rules 301-321 covered manual block operation. Train order signals (See Figures 18-20) were used to govern operation of trains, "...both for train order and block." The stop signal and the proceed signal were self-explanatory. The proceed with caution signal meant that the train had to run "under control" to the next block station. The signal at a block station had to be kept at "stop" at all times, unless directed by the dispatcher.
Dispatchers and block operators had heavy responsibilities in this system. Under Rule 305, block operators had to inform the dispatcher of an approaching train. The dispatcher would then issue instructions to the block operator such as "red," "green," "yellow," or "caution card." He would add his initials. The operator was to repeat these orders, add his initials, his office call "...and display [the] signal or issue [the] caution card as required." Operators were supposed to OS trains as soon as the train passed 300 feet beyond the train order signal. They were, of course, to make sure that the correct markers were displayed on the train. Where trains were in the clear at a block station the operator had to report if the train was on the main line or a siding. Sometimes, trains had to pass stop signals to work at a station or to meet a train. They could do this with the dispatcher’s permission and if properly flagged. In addition to the responsibilities described above, the operator had to keep detailed records (in duplicate) of all block movements at his station. The block operator sent one set of these records to the dispatcher and kept the other on file.
No more than one train could occupy a block except that second and third class trains and extra freights running in the same direction could, when allowed by the dispatcher, follow one another at five minute intervals, restricted by a caution signal or caution card. Passenger trains had rights over all other trains on the road. A passenger train could, under the direction of the dispatcher, enter a block occupied by a freight train, as long as it followed ten minutes behind the freight, restricted by a caution card or caution signal. In no case, could a freight train enter a block occupied by a passenger train. Trains also could not back into a block once they had cleared without first getting permission form the dispatcher and flagging the train. The intent here was to give the dispatcher maximum safety and operational flexibility.
The Buffalo, Rochester and Pittsburgh operated through the heart of the snowbelt south of Lake Erie. Rule 303 specified that snowplows and "engines equipped with flangers in service must be run in absolute block." Further, engineers and block operators were to keep the dispatcher informed of adverse weather conditions encountered out on the road that could affect operations. Rule 514 said that in "foggy or stormy weather when signals cannot be plainly seen the signals must be approached cautiously, so that the enginemen and trainmen can see and interpret them correctly, always bearing in mind that safety is of greater importance than time."
Rules 501-522 covered Automatic Block Signals. Automatic Block Signals on the B&P were typically set to "proceed" and would indicate "stop" if switches on main tracks or crossovers were not in their normal positions. According to Explanatory Note "l" in the Book of Rules, the signals were designated by numbers "...indicating approximately the distance in miles and tenths of miles according to mile posts. Signals governing northward trains [had] even numbers and signals governing southward trains [had] odd numbers." Wherever possible the BR&P placed signals "on posts immediately to the right of the track to be governed." Otherwise, they were on signal bridges or on "bracket posts" to the right of "one or more intervening tracks." Figure 4 shows a bracket post installation while Figures 1 through 3 show typical aspects for home block signals on the BR&P.
The Buffalo, Rochester and Pittsburgh had special rules for interlocking plants, which typically were found and junctions or particularly busy pieces of track. An interlocking, according to the rule book was an "arrangement of switch, lock, and signal appliances so interconnected that their movements must succeed each other in a predetermined order." There were also some more definitions as listed below:
Interlocking Plant - An assemblage of switch, lock, and signal appliances, interlocked.
Interlocking Station - A place from which an interlocking plant is operated.
Fixed Signal - A signal at a fixed location indicating a condition affecting the movement of a train.
Interlocking Signals - The fixed signals of an interlocking plant.
Home Signals - A fixed signal at the point at which trains are required to stop when the route is not clear.
Distant Signal - A fixed signal used in connection with a home (and advance) signal to regulate the approach thereto.
Dwarf signal - A low fixed signal.
Interlocking signals were a little different than those used on the road. Figures 10, 21 and 27 show "stop"indications used in various situations. Figures 11,13, 22,24, 26, and 28 depict what the BR&P called "caution." This signal appeared when the block was clear, but the block in advance was not clear. The engineman was supposed to approach the next signal prepared to stop. Proceed indications are shown in figures 12, 23, and 25. The normal indication for home signals was "stop."
