Railways – Terminals and stations
Reexamination Certificate
2000-05-26
2002-08-27
Gordon, Stephen T. (Department: 3612)
Railways
Terminals and stations
C104S029000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06439128
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention is related to intermodal transportation, and more particularly to a system and method of controlling the transport of truck trailers over a railway system.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Conventional intermodal terminals have long delays in processing tractor-trailers into the rail yard for transport of the trailers via rail. Typically there is a bottleneck at the access point. As tractor-trailers arrive at the rail yard, they wait in line as each tractor-trailer is manually checked-in. The access point personnel records all of the transport information required for shipping, to include trailer (size, type, etc.), billing information, details regarding the shipment, such as destination, weight, commodity code, commodity description, package type, broker, actual shipper, actual consignee or the like. Each tractor-trailer is checked-in on a first come first serve basis and is not guaranteed a spot on a particular train. Due to the long delays at the access point truckers are required to wait sometimes for over an hour while transport vehicles ahead of them are checked-in and then another hour while they are checked-in. Once processed in the driver drops the trailer off in a designated area and departs, in most cases, without an assurance that the trailer will depart on the next train.
When picking up a trailer the driver again has to wait in a queue consisting of other pick-up and drop-off transports for check-in. Since the trucking companies who own the trailers are not assured transport on a particular train tractor-trailer drivers are often required to wait for the train which is transporting the trailer they are picking up to arrive. The time spent dropping off and picking up trailers becomes a waste of resources for both the trucking companies and the independent tractor-trailer drivers.
Once the trailers are checked-in and dropped-off they are ready to be loaded onto the trains. The process of loading and unloading trains with trailers is not only time-consuming but also labor intensive and costly. Conventional intermodal terminals are built to support cranes or other heavy lifting equipment used to lift the trailers onto rail cars. The infrastructure of the rail terminal is reinforced in order to support the weight of the crane or lifting equipment in operation. The crane or lifting equipment as well as the added infrastructure needed in order to operate the equipment is very costly. In addition, the process of lifting the trailers can easily damage the trailers as most trailers are not designed with lift capabilities and the stress of lifting the trailer weakens the structure of the trailer. Often the trailers are damaged beyond repair after just two lifts.
In addition to damage from lifting, trailers incur damage during transport due to poor suspension of rail cars and the amount of slack between rail cars. Traditionally rail cars have little to no suspension and causes damage to cargo. With little or no shock absorption, cargo and rail car structures are basically absorbing the energy transmitted from the constant movement on the rails. In addition, the slack between rail cars allows a significant amount of movement between rail cars in particular when negotiating curves. The movement due to slack causes the trailers to “sway” on the rail cars and produces additional stress on the trailer structure. As a result of the lack of suspension and the design of current rail cars transportation of trailers via rail results in significant costs due to trailer repair and cargo damage. What is needed is an efficient way to transport trailers via rail without expensive equipment and damage to the trailers and cargo.
After arrival at a terminal, the trains are separated into several sections while being moved onto several parallel tracks. Each section that the train is separated into is placed on one of the several parallel tracks. The process of unhooking train sections from one another and then either pulling or pushing each section onto parallel tracks is time consuming. The trains are then unloaded and loaded in piggyback fashion, only being able to work on alternating parallel tracks at the same time. In order to load and unload the trains in a timely fashion several cranes or other heavy lifting equipment are required. The trailers are then moved to a parking or storage area using moving equipment such as hostlers. The need for heaving lifting equipment, moving equipment, several parallel tracks with a reinforced surface to support the heavy equipment is a substantial investment, which drives up the cost of intermodal transportation significantly. What is needed is a simple inexpensive means to provide intermodal transportation.
Once the unloading is finished and the trailers are moved to an area for pick-up or storage the train is loaded for the next trip. Similar to unloading the lifting equipment and a plurality of crews are employed to load up the train. A significant amount of time is spent loading up the train and then hooking the parallel sections together to form one long train. In order to load or unload several trains at a time the number of tracks increases for each train. For example if each track section can accommodate 15 rail cars then a typical train which transports 60 rail cars requires 4 parallel tracks and each additional train also requires 4 parallel tracks.
The logistics of loading and unloading, for example, four separate trains on sixteen separate tracks is complex. Personnel must make sure the correct sections are on appropriate tracks to assist in optimizing transport to the next destination or pick-up and drop-off. Trains arriving to be loaded and/or unloaded may have to take their place in the queue before dropping rail car sections onto each designated track. The process may also cause logistics problems with other trains using the main rail. For instance, a train using the main rail may be held up waiting for the intermodal train or trains to clear the main line. Or the terminal can be designed with additional rail lines to accommodate the queue of intermodal trains. Such an approach, however, requires additional construction and maintenance and can waste valuable real estate.
Once the rail cars are all loaded the railcars are again tied up hooking the train back together. Currently, the process of hooking the train together involves a number of railway personnel to provide switching for each of the train sections, spotters to insure the train is properly hooked together and engine crew to move the train engine as required. The equipment, land, trained personnel and infrastructure are extremely expensive and these costs drive up the cost of transporting trailers via rail making it an unattractive option for the trucking industry in the short to medium haul arena. In addition, the unreliability of the trains, time spent waiting for check-in, not to mention damage due to lifting the trailer on and off rail cars as well as damage during transit also contribute to the unattractiveness of the train mode of transportation.
What is needed is a streamlined terminal and method of loading and unloading railway cars and in particular the loading, unloading and transport of trailers via rail.
SUMMARY
The above mentioned problems with intermodal transportation and terminal design are addressed by the present invention and will be understood by reading and studying the following specification.
According to one aspect of the present invention, a railway terminal includes a parking area, an access restriction system adjacent to the parking area and a railroad track adjacent to the parking area. The access restriction system limits access to said parking area. The railroad track includes a first section, a second section and a loading pad, wherein the first and the second sections each accommodate a plurality of intermodal railcars, each railcar designed to transport a truck trailer, wherein the first section is coupled to a main rail line. The loading pad links the first section of the railroad track to the second section of the r
Miller Douglas J.
Parry Alan O.
Blankenship Greg
Canadian Pacific Railway Company
Gordon Stephen T.
Schwegman Lundberg Woessner & Kluth P.A.
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