Y-BA07-25 Special Switch

During some holidays local jobs are annulled during weekdays. Part of this is observance of the holiday such as Good Friday or customer closures.

In this case the normal Bay City Local (Y-BA04-XX) was not scheduled to work today. However Lakes Forest Products requested a special switch in order to receive a boxcar of lumber needed for a a large project starting next week. I happened to snap photos of the switch, so follow along as we watch the Y-BA07-21 extra switch complete its work. Why BA07 versus 04? The 07 denotes it as a special switch versus regularly scheduled.

Power for Y-BA07-21 is EMD GP38-2 "3830". This motor carries the 30th scheme for the railroad. 

Better shot of entire motor at DSF

It never fails the car needed for the switch was buried around 10 cars deep. After an hour of switching the car is on its  way down the east yard lead. Conductor Dan is riding point protecting the shove.

After shoving clear of the mainline switch and toning up the DTMF power switches to align over to Bay Main 2, we see the job pulling alongside Lakes Forest Products.

Aligning the switch into LFP the job comes to a stop to allow the conductor Dan to remove the derail (red tack) into the customer.

The all door boxcar on spot is empty so the job will go ahead and pull the empty then spot the load.

The job continues it work setting the empty all door boxcar on the Essexville Branch, then returning to spot the load.

Load spotted - conductor ratchets down the brake wheel on the boxcar before unloading can begin.

Work complete the job stops short of picking up the empty to reset the detail. 

Customer work complete the Y-BA07-25 returns to Bay Yard with one empty in tow which will be left on yard 6 for the yard job to classify for outbound departure on Sunday evening.

Have a great Easter Weekend!

GM