LUGNET News : ~330/FAQ/Trains/points


Cary Clark / FAQ / Trains / points

What are points? -or- Where can I find train jargon explained?

From Larry Pieniazek: !

Points are the rails in a turnout that move. You’ll find an extensive train glossary here: http://my.voyager.net/lar/gloss.html

From Cary Clark:

Here’s another good train glossary: http://pavel.physics.sunysb.edu/RR/RailroadDefinitions.html

From Jeff Christner: !

On the railroad that I work for (Norfolk Southern), one refers to the points of a switch, as in “Make sure there is nothing fouling the points before you throw the switch” in case something is preventing the points from moving freely.

The points are the parts that move, the switch is thrown, and the turnout is the whole assembly. I’ve never heard it called a turnout at work; the yard dispatchers always call them switches.

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