TRRS 503: Railroad Track Switches / Turnouts Explained

31 March 2017 - Janesville, Wisconsin
Turnouts Explained on the Wisconsin & Southern Railroad

Railroads soon figured out that some clever mechanical bits would be needed if they ever wanted to have more than one track. Today, nearly all railroad turnouts, or switches, are of the point type, where a set of points are moved to create the alignment.

In the Janesville Yard on the Wisconsin and Southern, Brent Marsh gives a tour group of Michigan Tech Engineering students the details on turnouts, from how they work to what parts go into them.

NOTE: this film was taken and published with the permission of the Wisconsin & Southern Railroad. All individuals on the tour wore proper PPE and had authorization to be on property - the WSOR and TRRS remind all to NEVER TRESPASS on the railroad. It's dangerous, it's illegal, and it makes the job much more stressful. Don't do it!

Does railroad engineering sound like a career path for you? Check out Michigan Tech's railroad program by following the link below!
www.rail.mtu.edu

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Videography Equipment:
-Primary: Sony FDR-AX53 4K Camcorder
-Edited with: Cyberlink PowerDirector 13

Copyright 2017 Thornapple River Rail Series by Alex Christmas and published with permission of the WSOR.