Carrying the Freight

Freight traffic has always been the life-blood (источник жизни) of the railways.

The first railway lines were developed to carry minerals and freight; the idea of carrying passengers came second. Wagon loads of coal, iron ore and other minerals travelled short distances on early railways to factory or waterway. With the coming of the steam locomotive, railways were able to carry goods in larger quantities and more quickly than existing forms of transport; they generated a second phase of the Industrial Revolution.

By the end of the 19th century, the railway network was distributing literally anything from as small as an egg to as large as elephant. Large cities would have freight depots collecting goods for transit and delivering incoming products. As to small stations they would have sheds and yards to receive individual wagon loads, coal, packages or live-stock (домашний скот).

Mashalling yards were laid at strategic locations and goods trains would be routed through them to be re-formed, often more than once on a long journey.

Wagons were the property of individual railway companies or private users and spent much of their time working back empty to their places of origin.

Unit 5 Marshalling Yard Operation

Sorting or Marshalling yards are necessary for assembling single wagons into trains. The wagons are known to start from the yard or they may be received in the form of trains from other yards. This indicates two functions of a marshalling yard:

1) the forming into trains the wagons sorted in the yard itself;

2) the reforming into trains the wagons received from loading centres.

The fact that marshalling yards serve the interests of through traffic makes their location an exceedingly difficult problem. If a large industrial centre does not have a marshalling yard in the vicinity, all the traffic has to be dispatched to a yard some distance away. Marshalling yards must be located near a locomotive depot.

Sorting yards can be either flat yards or hump ones. Flat shunting involves constant movement backward and forward of the shunting engine and good visibility.

In the case of hump shunting, the shunting engine propels steedily forward and each “cut” of wagons, previously uncoupled, runs free down a short but steep slope into sorting sidings.

In a hump yard different types of retarders are used. A retarder is a device which checks the speed of the train during humping operations.

Trains arriving at a marshalling yard are placed in reception sidings, which may be parallel to sorting sidings.

Exercises

I. Pay attention to the translation of the word “either”:

either – каждый, любой (из двух);

either … or- или … или, либо …либо.

1.Either railway has two kinds of trains: regular trains and extra ones.

2.Either passenger train must be comfortable.

3.Trains can be driven either by diesel or by electric locomotives.

4.Containers can be sent either by road or by rail.

5.Either railway division is operated as a small railroad

II. Translate the sentences, paying attention to the word ”as”:

as– как; когда; так как

1.As the cars go down the hump they pass over a weighing scale.

2.Working trains are always run as extra trains.

3.Extra trains are operated as required.

4.As a result of C.T.C. usage the safety of train operation has increased.

5.Modern trains are automatically controlled as they operate at high speeds.

6.Each division is operated as a unit, just as if it were a small railroad.

7.The dispatcher can keep trains moving with as little delay as possible.

III. Mind the translation of the words:

well – хорошо as well – также as well as – так же, как и …

1.C.T.C. is used on railways but a human operator is necessary as well.

2.The new automatic device that is used in marshalling yards works well.

3.In designing yards the character as well as the volume of the traffic are considered.

4.Containers travel by rail and sea as well as by road.

IV. Translate the sentences, paying attention to Participle I:

1.The wagons rolling down a hump in the marshalling yard stop at the proper place.

2.A freight train starting on its run usually consists of cars moving to a number of different destinations.

3.Controlling the operation of trains the dispatcher provides the safety of traffic.

4.Having been tested the new C.T.C. system was put into operation.

5.The passenger station is in a valley leading to the hills.

6.The operator has a diagram showing him where every train is.

7.Setting up the route the dispatcher has only to press two buttons on the control panel.

8.Switches and retarders are in service, using lever controls.

9.Being scheduled in the time-table the freight train is to arrive in proper time.

10.When designing yards the character and the volume of the traffic are considered.

V. Translate the sentences, paying attention to Participle II:

1.Cars loaded with inbound freight are distributed to industrial sidings and freight houses.

2.The goods required can be delivered in a few days.

3.Diesel shunting locomotives involved in sorting push trains over the hump much quicker than it was done before.

4.When tested this new sorting system showed the desired results.

5.When this new sorting system was being tested it showed the desired results.

6.The sorting system tested showed good operation.

VI. Pay attention to the translation of the Infinitives:

1.The indications of signals are known to be controlled by the dispatcher.

2.We know marshalling yards to be used for sorting wagons.

3.The time-table is known to be always produced for a long period of time, generally for a year.

4.Many problems are supposed to be connected with ensuring the safety of train movement.

5.The train dispatcher appears to be responsible for the security of passengers and freight.

6.The operation under C.T.C. is considered to be much safer than by time-table.

7.Everybody knows three kinds of tracks to exist at the sorting sidings.

8.A new experiment seems to have been carried out in this marshalling yard.

9.C.T.C. has proved to be a means of saving train time.

10.Traffic capacity of railroads is reported to have been increased by introducing automatic train control systems.

VII. Make a summary of the text: