We use OCS clearances on the Sudbury Division in place of Train Orders (someday maybe we'll put up some Train Order Boards and do it the right way on the Webbwood Sub...), and I gather the principles are the same as Track Warrants.  If you have Yard Limits around Appaloosa Junction then your train can occupy the mainline within those limits without permission from the dispatcher, so your train ought to be able to head out and do its work as soon as it arrives.  

The real question is, should there be Yard Limits at Appaloosa Junction in the first place?  Yard Limits require all trains to operate on all tracks at restricted speed.  Is there enough switching going on there to require Yard Limits?  It might be better not to have Yard Limits and give the trains working there Work Between instructions so that when there is no work taking place mainline trains can run at track speed.

Jurgen,

the biggest problem with our modular layouts is the lack of "track only" modules so the distances between the yards are rather short (http://www.america-n.de/Activities/Braunlage2009/Braunlage2009.htm). For this reason it´s not bad to slow the trains down with yard limits. On the other hand it´s a welcome relief for the dispatcher, that he need not control the traffic in these yards.

I see where you're coming from, Bernd.  If you want to slow traffic down, Yard Limits will do the trick.

However, there's no need for the dispatcher to have to micromanage traffic where a train is switching.  If you make the train a Work Extra and give it Work Between instructions, then you give trains which are going to run through the train's work limits a "Protect Against Work Extra #### between point A and point B order", and then it's up to the trains to work out how they are going to get around each other; it's out of the dispatcher's hands altogether.

If he's really inside yard limits, he can do almost anything he needs to on the main or any other track without the dispatcher being involved. That's the purpose of yard limits.

If he's outside yard limits, then a work clearance/warrant would be required, and as Jurgen mentioned, other trains can be given "protect against" orders through his work zone.

Under TWC normally there's not such thing as an extra or work extra. There's no class, superiority by class or superiority by direction. There's just trains and the DS with the DS being able to tell the crews 'where to go'.

A 'proceed to' warrant give a train the authority to proceed from a point to a point using main tracks. With such a warrant a train may not back up. A back up move is defined as moving the rear of the train against the direction of travel authorized by the warrant for that train (this applied only on the main track).

A warrant is only needed to occupy the main track. So a train that received a warant with the 'clear main track at last named point' box checked has to clear up when it gets to the final named point on the warrant. Let's use Mr. Fugate's layout as an example.  The DS issues a warrant to a train in Roseberg (inside yard limits).  Checkbox 1. Proceed from Rosebert to Rice Hill

Checkbox 7 (I think 7 on Joe's warrants) - clear main track at last named point.

Once the warrant is made ok the train can now travel the mainline from Roseberg to Rice Hill. At Rice Hill they must get into the siding.

Another example, this time on my Bear Creek and South Jackson railroad. The DS gives the Oakhill Turn a warrant to proceed from Mill Bend to Oakhill, clear main track at last named point. There is a wye at Oakhill off of the siding. Once clear of the main in Oakhill the 'turn' can switch away to theirs hearts delight as long as they stay off of the main track (a skilled crew can usually manage to do just that). The 'turn' only needs another warrant when their switching is done and they're ready to head back down the hill to Mill Bend.

Another example, a local train needs to switch out some cars on a trailing point spur. There is no siding or run around in that town, only the spur track. Does the local need a work-between warrant to switch that spur?

Nope. The local pulls part way up to the spur then cuts off the rear of their train leaving in on the main. They pull foward then back onto the spur to grab the mts there pulling forward again than backing the picked up mts onto the rear end of their train. Then foward and back onto the spur to spot the loaded setouts, then back to their train, pump up the air, brake test and off they go. Assuming they were smart enough to leave the rear end of their train back far enough for the cut of pickups to fit between the turnout fouling point and the rear part of the train the caboose didn't move backward so the warrant was not violated even though it didn't explicitly say the local could do the switching. It didn't need to in this case (but woe to the DS who sends another train down the tracks after the local figuring the local would be out of the way by the time they got there! Ouch...)

A work between is used when the train it is issued to will need to be going every which way but loose between the two named work between points. For example the Rice Hill Rocket on Joe Fugate's layout gets a warrant

Checkbox 8 (not sure about that number again!) work between Roseberg and Rice Hill.

Since this train leaves from Roseberg, that's it. No other warrants or boxes needed. This train now has authority to use and abuse the main track between Roseberg and Rice Hill to the hearts content of the crew. There are two towns this train does switcihng in, Oakland and Sutherlin. No matter, both areas are within the work between limits so they can do as they please.

So! If a train has a work between Rice HIll and Roseberg does it need another warrant to go back to Roseberg when finished?

Nope! Since the end of their authority is Roseberg yard limits they can just call the YM and ask to come into his jurisdiction (it's nice to tell the DS that they're heading back home).

What if another train needs to get from Roseberg, past Rice Hill, to Cottage Grove and then on to Eugene (on Joe's layout)?

Two ways (that I'm familiar with):

1) The DS contacts the Rice Hill Rocket (Oakland Turn) crew and tells them to clear the main and contact him when clear. Once they have gotten the main clear through out the entire length of their work between warrant they call the DS and give back their warrant. Now the DS can issue a warrant to the train(s) needing to get through the Oakland/Sutherlin area. Then the DS would likely give the Rice Hill Rocket's crew another work between warrant contingent on the other train having passed through.

This works well on real railroads where there are miles and miles of track between towns and trains are relatively infrequent.

2) The DS gives the Rice Hill Rocket a work between warrant joint with 'trains' and with restricted speed across it's territory. Then when another train needs to get through the DS gives them a warrant joint with SP8227 (or what ever the engine # of the Rice Hill Rocket was) and restricted speed over the territory. The other train calls SP8227 and the two train crews arrage how to get by each other without the DS getting directly involved. This doesn't work real well on prototype railroads because it requires both trains to operate over the entire area at restricted speed. But on models with our inevitably short main line lengths between towns and too frequent trains it works well. The DS doesn't have to orchestrate everything getting previous warrants cleared and issuing new ones and the restricted speeds don't reall amount to much on many model railroads.

btw. restricted speed is usually not a specific speed limit in mph (or kph) but instead the speed at which a trainman would be able to safely bring his train to a stop in 1/2 of their forward visibility.

So instead of sticking yard limits all over the place, try some 'joint with trains' warrants.

btw. In an earlier example some one had a proceed A to D clear main track at last named point where D was within yard limits. I don't believe this to be valid, as the DS doesn't control what happens within yard limits.

Hope this wasn't too long...

Cheers,

Charlie

There seem to be a few detail differences between Track Warrants and OCS clearances.  The Work Extra is just OCS terminology; all trains are extras under OCS, so effectively there are no classes with OCS either.  Joint with Trains is a variation on Work Limits, but Work Limits are somewhat more flexible, since the Work Extra can allow meeting trains to operate with no restrictions, therefore no speed reduction.  

However, since the question was on Track Warrants, I defer to Charlie. 

Actually with OCS it's not "extra" either. Trains are addressed by engine number and direction ("1234 West") or when issued a work clearance "Work 1234". Not "Work Extra 1234"

Class and superiority don't exist under OCS either and there are no extras because there are no scheduled trains. The idea of "extra" no longer exists.

Assuming they were smart enough to leave the rear end of their train back far enough for the cut of pickups to fit between the turnout fouling point and the rear part of the train the caboose didn't move backward so the warrant was not violated even though it didn't explicitly say the local could do the switching. It didn't need to in this case (but woe to the DS who sends another train down the tracks after the local figuring the local would be out of the way by the time they got there! Ouch...)

Woe be to any dispatcher who does this even if the other train is out of the way by the time the next one gets there. The dispatcher should receive a track release from the train, indicating that they have passed a specifically named point before sending another train down any part of the track that the first train has been cleared, unless there is a secondary rear-end protection system like ABS signals, or the following train is specifically told to protect against the preceding train for the length of the clearance overlap.

I'm not sure about track warrants exactly, but under OCS a clearance or track release is given at any referenced location, whether a specific milepost, sign or track switch (eg, "East siding switch Apple" rather than just "Apple")

Actually with OCS it's not "extra" either. Trains are addressed by engine number and direction ("1234 West") or when issued a work clearance "Work 1234". Not "Work Extra 1234"

Class and superiority don't exist under OCS either and there are no extras because there are no scheduled trains. The idea of "extra" no longer exists.
 

That's today, Chris; when OCS was introduced trains were extras or work extras, or even passenger extras.  No doubt someone decided the word extra was irrelevant and they decided to drop it at some point.  On the Sudbury Division we use the old format, as you will realize tomrrow at our operating session.

But again, that is OCS, and the subject was Track Warrants.

A little off-topic.. but that FREMO layout looks lots of fun to operate. I really wish there was a local group doing FREMO or OneTrak for operations. Everything I see in New England for modular N seems to be N-Trak for show running. Triple mainline railfanning is not my thing.

Chris

ed: Checked out the website, cool stuff!