| Chicago Burlington & Quincy Railroad F3 132A westbound at Naperville, Illinois on August 3, 1965, Kodachrome by Chuck Zeiler. There are a couple of gentlemen on the bridge observing, and here's what transpired as best I remember: My friend, Ed DeRouin, explained to me that this was a local freight, and if there was a 'hot' car, they would set it out at Naperville, to be picked up by the East End Way Freight, and delivered to the customer, avoiding the usual setout at Eola, and adding a day to the delivery. The head-end brakeman is conferring with the crew, and they will set out a boxcar of newsprint paper (typically in a CP boxcar), that will be picked up and delivered to the newspaper printer in Downers Grove. However, there are some logistics to work out. This train has stopped short of Loomis Street, the only level crossing in Naperville, and will cut off here so as not to block the crossing. Unfortunately, the train has already activated the automatic crossing gates, and vehicular traffic has been stopped by the lowered gates. The switch to the siding is on the other side of Loomis Street, so someone will have to flag the crossing while the setout takes place. My guess is that the Fireman is getting drafted into crossing protection duty. |