Why is the second locomotive backwards?

Being the engineers in a push-pull train was considered to be a special skill. Today, the second locomotive is operated by remote control. And the reason the two locomotives face in opposite directions is that it makes them reversible when they get to wherever it is that they're going.



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Other than making the horn sound different, chimes are turned around for safety reasons. Most locomotives make occasional trips backwards, so rearward-facing chimes are a necessity. Until radios became standard, rear-facing horns also helped train crews hear horn signals from the front of the train.

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Anyway, the reason for using two locomotives is pretty simple. Twice the number of locomotives means twice the power. This extra power boost is used for especially heavy loads or for trains going up steep grades.

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As wireless technologies advanced in the 1960s, freight railroads began adding extra locomotives to the rear of trains to give them enough power to climb steep hills. This is how distributed power was born.

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If you hear, two small horns, it means the motorman is asking the guard to direct the railway signal to start the train. In case you hear three smaller horns, it suggests that the motorman has lost control over the train. This also acts as a signal to pull the vacuum break immediately. This signal is rarely heard.

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Under the Train Horn Rule (49 CFR Part 222, issued on August 17, 2006), locomotive engineers must begin to sound train horns at least 15 seconds, and no more than 20 seconds, in advance of all public grade crossings.

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Railroads govern the use of bells on locomotives and mandate when they should be rung, as at crossings, quiet zones, or meeting points. Locomotive bells' chief function is to warn pedestrians, crew, or others nearby with a bright ding that a train is moving or will be soon.

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As a train slows down on steep grades and tight curves, or approaches a signal light or stopping destination, sanding assists in preventing the wheels from sliding as the braking systems are applied. Sanding has been used to increase friction and improve traction since the very inception of railroad transport.

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- One long whistle-like sound can be heard when the train is coming to a halt, and the engineer applies the air brakes. - Two long honks mean that the train has released the brakes and is ready to continue its journey.

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Anyway, don't blame the engineer: They're required to blow that horn. The regulation in question is called the Final Rule on the Use of Locomotive Horns—a name that strongly implies they've had just about enough of your bitching—and it requires four blasts 15 to 20 seconds before every crossing.

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The intensity of sound will vary at night, sometimes louder and sometimes softer. It has to do with the height and strength of a temperature inversion just above the ground. On clear, calm nights, it is cooler at the ground than higher up.

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The 4-6-2 locomotive became almost globally known as a Pacific type after a New Zealand locomotive that was shipped across the Pacific Ocean.

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For as long as steam locomotives have been around (and the same goes for ships, aircraft, and other large objects that move), crews have referred to their charges as female.

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