What is a Rail Hump Yard?
What is a rail hump yard?
A rail hump yard is a facility that uses gravity to aid in the shunting of train cars. A hump yard consists of a network of tracks and switches where a group of railroad cars, or a single train, are marshaled according to their destination. A hump yard may be a large, high-volume classification yard such as those on the NS or Union Pacific, or it can be a smaller track within a larger yard.
Almost all large shunting yards have been converted into a hump yard. This is because a hump yard is more efficient than the traditional method of moving trains on rails, as it can process more cars in less time and without requiring a large number of employees.
The hump yard concept evolved from the early 20th century, when it became clear that trains were unable to travel as fast through the marshalling and shunting yards as they could on rails. To address this problem, a new approach was developed where trains would be driven over the tracks on a raised piece of ground, known as a hump. The uncoupled wagons would then roll down this hump, over switching points to their correct berth, which were then made up into the train for its intended destination.
Today, many hump yards are equipped with automated control systems to help them achieve their throughput goals. These systems control car movements from the hump lead to bowl tracks, monitor train-building operations, and help maintenance forces identify equipment-repair issues.
A hump yard control system is one of the best ways for railroads to reduce dwell times, maintain transit times and increase efficiency. It is also a key tool for managing the cost of running a hump yard.
Suppliers of hump yard control systems say that more technological innovation is coming to the market that will help operators get more information about how their rail cars are being used and where they are in the yard. A few suppliers, such as RailComm and Trainyard Tech, are already introducing software and other features that automate certain processes to boost the accuracy of placing the right car on the right train.
For instance, a system called ExacTrek from RailComm will automatically display car-tracing data that can be retrieved by the yard manager, and it will help managers flag hazardous-material-carrying cars in the hump yards. It will also help them obtain more accurate car inventory data so that they can better manage their maintenance dollars, says John Zmijewski, director of signal engineering at Union Pacific Railway.
Another new feature on the way is the ability to detect and diagnose a switch machine’s performance problems. This helps a railroad’s maintenance force to better identify and repair equipment problems, suppliers say.
The technology can also help a railroad track down the location of the car in the yard, which is useful for determining whether the car should be transferred to another lane or stored for later transfer.
