# Super-long 'monster train' rolls through Southern California



## Reckers

Excerpts:

"An apparently unprecedented, super freight train extending about 3 1/2 miles rolled through Southern California over the weekend, catching state regulators off guard and prompting concerns about potential safety risks and traffic delays, The Times has learned."

"The 18,000-foot-long train was two to three times the length of a typical freight train, Clark said, and the largest he knew to operate in the state.

It linked 295 rail cars, carrying more than 600 cargo containers, mostly double-stacked, said Tom Lange, a Union Pacific spokesman. Nine locomotives were spread along the train and additional personnel were on board to monitor equipment.

The train, the longest ever assembled by Union Pacific, was permitted to travel up to 65 mph as it crossed the Los Angeles Basin, Lange said. He said the train needed three to five minutes to clear a grade crossing."


Full article from L.A. Times: 

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-monster-train13-2010jan13,0,4250750.story


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## Boston&Maine

Hmm, I wonder if there are any videos of this on YouTube? :smokin:


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## subwayaz

Boston&Maine said:


> Hmm, I wonder if there are any videos of this on YouTube? :smokin:


There are You Tube videos of this train but unable to find them at the moment.
I saw one of them and it was awesome


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## gwjdnscale

this brings up an interesting issue a supper long first class train is most likely very profitable sure they needed two crew ... but they got 3 trains worth and they could never run 3 trains in 5 min down a track so it makes a whole lot of $$$$ 

but 5 min of traffic stoppage unplanned is actually dangerousness in an urban area.

so i could see a practicality in building supper freights and sending them all in a row say at 11pm over night im sure that ca will out law this sort of thing though


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## T-Man

The China Express. Container Ships unload at Long Beach and that train is always moving.


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## Smokestack Lightning

gwjdnscale said:


> this brings up an interesting issue a supper long first class train is most likely very profitable sure they needed two crew ... but they got 3 trains worth and they could never run 3 trains in 5 min down a track so it makes a whole lot of $$$$
> 
> but 5 min of traffic stoppage unplanned is actually dangerousness in an urban area.
> 
> so i could see a practicality in building supper freights and sending them all in a row say at 11pm over night im sure that ca will out law this sort of thing though


+1 The Terminator is doing his best to turn Cali into a purely tax and service charge based economy.


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## Big Ed

Happy Birthday to you Mr Reckers.
Your all most an OLD FART!


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