PER DIEM BOXCARS HISTORY- EXAMPLES

LIRR #161 spotting a Pickens RR or a St. Lawrence RR per diem boxcar at M. Remz, Port Jefferson 8/04/1979. Commonly owned, such as M&NJ, by the National Railroad Utilization Corp. The Pickens and St Lawrence cars had the word "Railroad" on the right side of the car. 

Per-diem List - Trains Sept. 1978

In the late 1970s, the M&NJ rostered 500 blue boxcars 50 feet (15 m) in length leased from NRUC, the National Railway Utilization Company. The cars were loaded with finished goods at Polytherm, then spent much of their time hauling loads in interchange service throughout the U.S. and Canada while the M&NJ collected 10% of the usage fees they generated. The boom in incentive per diem (IPD) boxcars ended by the early 1980s and the cars returned to the M&NJ which opened 2 miles (3.2 km) of unused track to store the cars until buyers could be found, a task which took almost a decade.

In the late 1960's the AAR (Association of American Railroads) was feeling the impending crunch of a general purpose boxcar (XM) shortage and moved into action to spur investment in railroad boxcars. In September 1970, they created and the ICC approved, something called Incentive Per Diem (IPD). This additional fee was charged on all XM cars during the 6 highest traffic months of a year, September - February and was added to the mileage and normal per diem (per day) fees. These IPD fees could only apply to newly built or rebuilt boxcars, not old clinkers from the 40's and 50's. There were limitations on the number of IPD cars a railroad could make available for interchange, but if a railroad didn't have any boxcars during a set of base years they were not limited to the number of IPD cars they could put into interchange.

The first batch of cars were built by Berwick Forge and Fabricating in December 1977 and were delivered in January 1978. An additional batch of Berwick cars arrived in February. In September and October an additional batch of cars came from the Evans Railcar Division of Evans Products. In sum these hundreds of cars represented 16.85 million dollar investment. All the cars were 50 foot outside braced cars painted blue with white stenciling and were immediately set loose on the railroads of North America. To earn the maximum amount of money for the M&NJ these cars had to be kept moving, ping-ponging from one railroad to another. A few did see "home" rails during the hey day of the IPD craze, M&NJ customer Polytherm (now known as Genpak) shipped out loads of expanded foam plates and trays to customers all over the nation. Even with hundreds of these IPD boxcars under his control, Pete Rasmussen still noted being short of empties during 1978 and early 1979 as those rolling money tree's moved all over the rails.

Several things changed this cash cow to road kill; the recession of the late 70's early 1980's, truck deregulation and increased investment in boxcars by major railroads. The national recession was the greatest blow to the IPD boom as the loads for the cars dried up and they began returning to the M&NJ. Even the M&NJ's own boxcar customer, Polytherm, switched to truck deliveries of its finished products. The out of service portion of the M&NJ was cleared of almost 20 years of underbrush and trees as more and more faded blue boxcars returned to the M&NJ which opened 2 miles (3.2 km) of unused track to store the cars until buyers could be found, a task which took almost a decade.
 

ROOFWALKS/RUNNING BOARDS DETAILS HISTORY - EXAMPLES

Freight cars in specific applications had roofwalks and hatches. Monon, for example, had cars purchased in the late 60's with roof hatches, and those cars had roofwalks. They had a low mounted handbrake, and the grabs were low, except for the ones specifically going up to the roofwalk.

So, at the same time the roof walkways were eliminated, hand brake wheels were lowered to a point away from the roofs, and an alternate way of getting from one side of the car to the other (end walkways) was provided.  This took place on box-type cars first, and later on covered and open-top hoppers.  

Roofwalk removal did come with some adverse conditions, beginning in the 1960's:  Taller box cars, including hi-cube cars (some of the earliest ones did have walkways up there, but lost them quickly).

Cushioning devices on box cars increasing the distance between carbodies (extensions to the walkways did little to help that--and there was always the chance that the distance between carbodies could change dramatically in mid-jump). Differing heights for cars in a freight train, and cars such as gondolas and hoppers that had no roof walks at all.  What do you do when the next car is a hopper, gondola, or flatcar?  This was always a problem, but full height ladders provided the access. Fortunately, box cars became far less prevalent than they were prior to the 1960's.

ACI LABEL HISTORY

ACI (Automatic Car Identification) labels/plates were introduced in 1967 and mandated by the FRA in 1968 to be installed on all interchange equipment by 1970.  
They were abandoned as impractical in 1978. After 1978 the plates could be removed, but many were never removed.  As the equipment passed by
the trackside scanner it was scanned.  All information necessary to keep track of the engine or car was then sent to a master location where it was logged.

The AAR had recognized from their field tests that periodic inspection and label maintenance would be requirements to maintain a high level of label readability. Regulations were instituted for label inspection and repair whenever a railcar was in the repair shop, which on average happened every two years.

By 1975 90% of all railcars were labeled. The read rate was about 80%, which means that after seven years of service 10% of the labels had failed for a variety of reasons, most evident on flatcars that had low-mounted labels for example. Dirt, scratches, fading from sunlight and vandalism all contributed to the eventual failure of this system.

Unfortunately the maintenance program never gained sufficient compliance. Without maintenance the read rate failed to improve, and the ACI (GTE KarTrak) system was abandoned by 1977. ACI tags ended. March 1, 1992.

The era of the 40 foot boxcar wasn't quite dead on April 1st, 1976, and the new Conrail used many of them in those first few years. The writing was on the wall for these steam era freight cars though, and by 1980 most were off the roster or in MOW service. This Erie Lackawanna car was in pretty good shape March 1978 day, and the "XF" Food Service Only" lettering indicates it had an interior lining for food service. Many of these EL cars were used to haul bagged flour out of Buffalo. Few if any 40 footers received a full Conrail paint job. Info: Ron A. Durfee

LIRR C-91 thru C-96 ex-IC caboose originally built with the side door. Acquired by the LIRR: 1/1972. ACI labels and COTS stencils applied. 

All-door cars were used for dimensional lumber, plywood, siding, and other manufactured building products that needed weather protection, but are not convenient to load through a double-door boxcar.  The drawback was the maintenance requirements of the door carriage and latching mechanisms and the vulnerability to damage of the doors and mechanisms, plus a higher capital cost.  All-door cars were not uncommon in the 1975-1985 time frame.  Bennett Lumber at Princeton, Idaho, had a modest fleet of 50-100 or so. 

CONSOLIDATED STENCILS HISTORY

Defined by the AAR, the large single panel COTS were optional and applied to new and rebuilt cars from 1972 to July 1, 1974. On that date the two part COTS, with the lub info, became mandatory with a deadline of 1979 for application to all cars.  Since 1982, subdivided into three or four parts, however shortly thereafter, this was revised to three panels. References 12/1978 RMC, and 1/1982 RMC. Info: Jim Eager

COTS: clean, oil, test, and stencil for brake system
RPKD or LUB: repacked, for journals on solid-bearing trucks or lubed, for roller bearings
IDT: in-date test, for brakes
RCD: reconditioned, if a car has been rebuilt
INSP: inspected    Source:  Kalmbach book "Detailing Freight Cars"]

D&RGW caboose #01423 12/28/2009 Photo: James R. Griffin

LIRR C-60 at Yard A, LI City  1983 Note: CR gondola in background with yellow "not defective wheel inspection dot" built prior to 1978

  U-1 DEFECTIVE WHEEL INSPECTION DOT  HISTORY

Flat car wrapped lumber load with defective wheel dot - 
Sayville prior to 12/1978  Photo: Steven Lynch

The Southern Wheel Company 33? wheels that were suspected of failing 
and giving us the inspection dots. Photo/Archive: Doug Sword

HISTORY SHORT VERSION:
1978 March U-1 wheel inspection dot for defective 33" wheels. Yellow dot = not defective (built prior to 1978, new cars 1978) White dot = defective wheels, repair required prior to end 1978. No dots = Built 1979+

REPORTING MARKS/DIMENSIONAL DATA

CAPY (nominal capacity) is the intended load-carrying capacity of the car, to the nearest 1000 pounds. This is determined by the structural strength of the car's underframe and the size of the journal bearings of the car's trucks. This marking is no longer required as the actual maximum load weight is determined by the load limit as described below.

LD LMT (load limit) is the maximum weight of lading that can be carried by the car, to the nearest 100 pounds. This is determined by subtracting the weight of the car when empty from the total allowable gross weight given the size of the car's journal bearings and the structural strength of the car design. The load limit for a car is usually a bit greater than its capacity; the two figures can be equal, but capacity can never exceed load limit. Note that there is usually a difference between what the car is designed to carry (CAPY) and what it will actually carry. The load limit must always be greater than capacity.

LT WT (light, or empty, weight) is the weight of the car when empty. This information is important for two reasons. First, it helps determine the load limit for the car. Second, when the car is empty it helps operators asses the actual weight of the train and assign the right locomotives among other things.

Car Weight Date: This is the last location and date at which the railroad or owner last verified the car was weighed to determine its actual light weight. EXAMPLE:  CR-AB 10-83. CR-AB ? indicates that this car was weighed by Conrail at their Abrams Yard (near Philadelphia). Railroads typically use their reporting marks and a two-letter yard or shop code.  NEW ? is often seen here and means that the weight has not yet been calibrated since the car's as-built weight.

Steel cars are generally supposed to be reweighed every 30 months (15 for wood), but in practice it is often much less frequent than that. Cars are typically are reweighed when they are serviced. A cars light weight  (LT WT) will decrease over the years through wear and tear but may go back up during repairs. Since many loads are billed by weight, having an accurate measure of the car is important. If the car has lost weight over time then the railroad could be hauling some of the load for free as it reads the scales.

Conrail (CR) 878330 is a covered hopper.  "LO" is the AAR designation for covered hoppers, for example.

Dimensional Data:  Indicates both inside and out of the freight car. Exterior dimensions are important so that operators will know the car can fit within the clearances of particular routes. Interior dimensions help when assigning cars to a customer for loading and can help at the loading dock as well. Other dimensions like the size of door openings are also often included on the car as well.

?BLT 3-37? indicates when the car was built (March, 1937.) This information is important to the railroad as many things are tied to the build date of the car including inspection periods, lease / payment accounting and retirement.

PLATE C

SCL- Family Lines Double Door boxcar 84 Lumber, Islip  north siding 3/1980

                    
                        Plate C Loading Diagram

CSX 50' Waffle side boxcar, North siding Islip 1/13/2008

1970's BOXCAR FEATURE EXAMPLES

Great Northern #19602 Fort Worth, TX  1/12/1979 Photo/Archive: Rick Morgan

Great Northern #13239 Plug-Sliding Double Door Klamath Falls, OR 8/29/1974 Photo/Archive: Ron Hawkins

Great Northern #12506 "Big Sky Blue" D&H Yard, Oneonta, NY 4/1972  Photo??archive: Steven Lynch

1966-1980 LIRR FREIGHT SIGHTINGS CHART

1969 LIRR FREIGHT CARS HANDLED 

LIRR FOOD BUSINESS - 1974

BOXCAR LOADS 1950-1970's

Commodities carried in boxcars in the 1940-1970 period - by Sam A. McCall

1. Automobiles - shipped in Auto XAR boxcars
2. Automobiles - shipped LCL
3. Bags - Commodities in - Flour, Rice, Beans etc etc
4. Barrels, Drums or Kegs
5. Batteries - Storage
6. Brick and Hollow Building Tile
7. Brick - Hop Top
8. Butter in Tubs in Refrigerator Cars
9. Cable on Reels and Wire Commodities
10. Car Doors
11. Car Wheels - Loose
12. Cylinders - Empty, With or Without Caps
13. Fiberboard Containers
14. Freight
15. Furniture - Car Load
16. Furniture - LCL
17. Grain and Grain Products in Fiberboard Containers or Sacks
18. Ink and Like Commodities in Six-Gallon Pails
19. Livestock
20. Lumber
21. Machinery
22. Marble in Slabs
23. Sheet Steel, Tin Plate and other steel products
24. Mixed Loads of Commodities (LCL - less than carload) in wooden crates, cardboard boxes, etc.
25. Paper and Similar Commodities on Skids
26. Plasterboard, Wallboard etc in Solid Loads or Bagged Commodities as Mixed Loads
27. Projectiles, Bombs and Cartridge Cases (Empty)
28. Radiators-Cast Iron
29. Refrigerators-Mechanical
30. Roofing Materials-Prepared
31. Soda Ash
32. Stones-Pulp Grinder
33. Stoves and Ranges
34. Rolled and Plate Glass
35. Untreated Cross Ties
36. Bulk Grain
37. Pig Lead, Copper Bars and Similar
38. Unsaturated Roofing Felt and Pulpboard Paper
39. Newsprint
40. Vitrified Clay Sewer Pipe

EVOLUTION OF CR (CONRAIL) 1976

NYC + PRR 1968 = PC + NYNH&H in 1969.  1976 Conrail (CR) included the Ann Arbor (bankrupt 1973), Erie Lackawanna (1972), Lehigh Valley  (1970), Reading (1971), Central Railroad of NJ (1967) and Lehigh and Hudson River (1972). Controlled railroads and jointly owned railroads such as Pennsylvania Reading Seashore Lines and the Raritan River (1980) were also included.

PRR System Map 1918

PC -1968

Conrail System Map -Amtrak 4/01/1976

6/01/1999

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

"The Other LIRR" - Newsday, Sunday 02/11/1979 by Paul Ballot Photos: Don Jacobsen
"Growth/Decline of Freight in Suffolk County" - by Michael Bartley