Report of the Interstate Commerce Commission on Block-Signal Systems and Appliances for the Automatic Control of Railway Trains (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1907 Excerpt: ...is very small as compared with the proportion on the American roads. For a long succession of years the official reports, published by the British Board of Trade, summarizing casualties reported by the8railroads of the United Kingdom, have shown the total deaths of employees from both collisions and derailments per million employees at only about one-fortieth of the aggregate from the same causes in this country--a truly startling comparison. The list of collisions on block-signaled American lines follows: In the two years from July 1, 1904, to July 1, 1906, there were reported in the United States 4,783 rear and butting collisions of trains; of these 160, killing 460 persons and injuring 2,408, were of sufficient importance to be specially mentioned in the accident bulletins. Of these 160, 13 occurred on lines worked by the telegraph block system. The following is a condensed statement of the causes of these 13, taken from the bulletins: 1. Rear collision of passenger trains; 16 persons killed, 52 injured. The signalman at B took the chance of permitting the signalman at A to give a clear signal before he had put his own signal at stop behind the preceding train, which was detained only 470 feet beyond B, in sight of the signalman, and was run into by the next train. 2. Rear collision of freight trains; 2 persons injured. A signalman fell asleep and failed to put his signal in the stop position after the passage of the leading train. Second train had reached his station on a permissive signal. 3. Rear collision of freight trains; 1 person killed and 2 injured. Signalman gave a clear signal when the block section was not clear; gross negligence. 4. Butting collision, passenger train and yard train; 19 persons injured. Signalman permitted a yard engine to oc...