Operations of Passenger and Commuter trains

Well, I have to plead guilty to a little local bias here but MY favorite commuter run was the Erie's Cleveland to Youngstown runs. In its heyday there was six trains a day each way (some continued to Pittsburgh on the P&LE) and there was some weekend service as well.
In the years that I rode and chased the train Erie-Lackawanna was down to one train each way Monday-Friday (28 & 29) but it was a pretty classy looking affair usually with an E-8 for power (often the 833) and four reclining seat coaches from Erie's long distance trains.
These trains even ran under the Conrail banner for about 10 months until the last run in January 1977.
During the daytime layover the train would be serviced at Erie's E.55th St. yard and the engine turned. Overnight it would layover at the Briar Hill yard in Youngstown. Occasionally there'd be an RS-2 for power and I caught it once with the RS-2 for steam heat and a GP-40 for power! The Erie ran a peddler local that usually had to sit "in the hole" at one of the passing sidings at Aurora or Mantua, Oh. In the later years the train was shortened and finally ended up with two cars. The route was through some beautiful hilly terrain between the gritty endpoints of Cleveland and Youngstown.

I posted a YouTube video of some of the 8mm footage I shot of the train in the mid '70s if anyone wants to take a look... enjoy, Ed

Erie-Lackawanna

I did enjoy that CN&W article, it makes me happy to see other people are interested in commuter trains. In the back, there was also an article of a station based on the upper level of 30th Street station in Philadelphia, which is mainly a commuter stop.


As for operations, I am curious about how much operations we can get out of it. My plan is to model high volume in a short time (maybe an hour or two on the NEC). The trains would run on close to their prototypical schedules (which is possible, mostly because i'm an insane maniac who spent a few months entering timetable data into MS Excel and made a nifty chart of all trains). by modeling only 1 hour, I can actually run the schedule without being overwhelmed, and without having to shell out mega-bucks for tons of expensive MU car models.



Lance Mindheim recently published an article (yet another in the MRP issue?) where he discussed extending the "time" on the layout but simulating the time it takes to do prototypical practices. This could be another way to add to the operation of our commuter trains.

One good place to start would be the book "One Day One Conductor". Its a small, short book (technically a "Photo Essay"), but it follows the work day of a conductor and train crew on the Erie Lackwanna's electrified commuter lines to Hoboken, NJ (in the Conrail era, though).

It literally walks you through everything the train crew has to do before, during and after a run, and even cites the rules. Not only is this all being described in detail, but there are pictures of the crews doing these operations (even the boring routine things!). While some of it might not be applicable to all commuter operations (such as raising and lowering pantographs, attaching/disconnecting jumpers, etc), I'm sure it could lead to some valuable insight.

If I could copy and paste that book here, I would! I'm definitely going to re-read this book. It helps now that I've since collected the appropriate Conrail ETTs and rule books to interpret the things discussed in the book further.


I suspect operations like the Montclair Line and the Gladstone Branch have potential as commuter layouts small enough to practical the model accurately and operate.

Some of the smaller branches of SEPTA might make an easy operation as well.

I think though, that part of the problem with modeling passenger operations is that there isn't a whole lot to do. You can't help passengers off the train. I guess you could simulate sending train signals.

Some terminal things you might be able to do, like turning the lights on and off, setting trains off into a coach yard or something.

If you have a layout that has a lot of complex routing, then it might be interesting from a dispatching point of view, where you need to set trains onto certain branches and have everything lined up for frequent service.

Though model railroad did publish commuter layout track plans for a medium space a while back, I wonder how practical these layouts are.

This is my first post but lately I have been programming my "road" locomotives to have the same operating features of their full scale cousins. Momentum, coasting, braking and a few other features. Also following operating rules while in service. With this in mind I have been operating trains on the layout watching out for braking distances and stopping the trains and specific points just like the prototypes e.g. station stop marker depending on train length. Commuter operations has a lot to offer... more than people think. You could run transfers and MOW equipment that could "plug the road" at certain locations and cause delays. CWR train is crossing the plant while a road waits behind a restrictive signal until it clears. It may delay the road for a few minutes. Sick customer on the train in need of medical at a local stop and other trains have to run around or get caught in no mans land between interlockings. Plenty of upset customers on that train wondering if they will miss their connections. These are some of the things that I have noticed and observed about the potential of commuter operations.

I am using ESU loksound decoders and the programmer as well as QSI Broadway limited locos with the upgrade from Tony's. My latest decoder is an ESU V4. These all work hand and hand with my NCE powerhouse system having the latest upgrade for added functions. The Sperry car always gets priority but it's never on the road during peak periods. I am an electric railroad fanatic living in the Northeast. It is what I saw growing up and still everyday.

If anything,take a look at what some of the British model Railroaders do,they pick or create a location,
such as a Station/Juction,then pick an era to model as well,in some cases to the exact details
If you can find the british model mag,"Model Rail"or 1 of the 2 model rail mags put out by Peco,
(Try Barnes & Noble,or a good newstand type store that gets out of town newspapers)and take a good look
at the layout plans and photos.
A layout does not have to be large to "tell the story",what they do across the pond,with staging and
fiddle yards can be amazing!

Thats what I'm trying to do. I'm trying to simulate the North Elizabeth station fairly exactly, but my module has been "Away". Maybe I'll get it back this Sunday, but its going to take to modules to do it justice.

As far as practicality, the layouts I was referencing were possible plans created by Model Railroader. I felt that they folded over a little much, with the terminals literally being on the "hilltop next door" in a cramped space. In a sense, they defied realism by looping around constantly to get to the other side.

When it comes to other "events" i've seen people suggest "event cards" but I'm not always sure if this is best. Since this is all in scale, and our trains are often the only animated thing persent, simulating a "delay" tends to just become sitting there for no reasonable region, and stopped trains are not necessarily fun trains.