Odd/Unusual Uses for Railroad Crossing Equipment

Talk about signals ranging from wigwags to EVA signals here.

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Gametrain54321
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Odd/Unusual Uses for Railroad Crossing Equipment

Post by Gametrain54321 » Tue Dec 17, 2019 7:30 pm

Over the past 6 months I have discovered many odd or unusual uses for crossing signal equipment. The first one I'd like to show is the truck crossing.

In Granite City, IL, there is a massive steel mill with large trucks transporting materials to another plant via a truck-only road, and it has to cross two roads, one of them is closed and one is still active. The active one also has a dead WABCO mechanical bell at it.
Active crossing: https://www.google.com/maps/@38.6946924 ... authuser=1
Closed crossing: https://www.google.com/maps/@38.6964809 ... authuser=1


Next up is the "low water" crossing signal. In the southwest suburbs of Austin, TX there is a road that crosses a waterway several times on bridges with no guardrails. The bridges barely go over the normal water level, so the gates would activate when the road floods.
Signal #1: https://www.google.com/maps/@30.3836526 ... authuser=1
Signal #2: https://www.google.com/maps/@30.4217013 ... authuser=1
As you can see, the 2nd signal has a bent light. I find it neat how they included emergency information on the signals as well.

More of these signals can be found at another bridge on a nearby road: https://www.google.com/maps/@30.2354433 ... authuser=1

Next up is an aircraft crossing. Yes, literally an airport taxiway crossing a road. This was found today in Anchorage, AK, and even has custom crossbucks! https://www.google.com/maps/@61.1801757 ... authuser=1
Unfortunately, no videos of those signals in action have been found.

Next up are crossing gates used at railroad diamonds. A couple instances have been found where crossing gates are used at railroad diamonds, to stop trains from colliding with each other, for some reason not using a conventional wayside signal system.
First up is a couple at a diamond in Jacksonville, FL: https://www.google.com/maps/@30.3587295 ... authuser=1
There is also one in Decatur, IL, though for some reason it doesn't use an actual gate mechanism, but rather a swinging mechanism: https://www.google.com/maps/@39.8633094 ... authuser=1
There used to be some in Gary, IN, but they were sadly removed before street view. A video of it can be found:


Lastly, this isn't really a crossing, but owensri2's old home signal setup used a motion sensor that would activate the signals if a car passed behind his house, so it could be considered a "car crossing."
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TheSignalMan2000
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Re: Odd/Unusual Uses for Railroad Crossing Equipment

Post by TheSignalMan2000 » Tue Dec 17, 2019 9:54 pm

Here's something unique from Japan where they use railroad crossing equipment for their heavy-duty truck crossing, since these type of vehicles are illegal to be driven on public streets in Japan, so these trucks has their own private road to transport from location to location..

https://www.google.com/maps/@33.9425437 ... 312!8i6656
https://www.google.com/maps/@33.9421556 ... 720!8i3360

ImageImageImage
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NathanFromEngland
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Re: Odd/Unusual Uses for Railroad Crossing Equipment

Post by NathanFromEngland » Tue Jan 28, 2020 1:26 pm

This crossing in Japan has crash resistant gates that lower from nearby cantilevers.
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freebrickproductions
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Re: Odd/Unusual Uses for Railroad Crossing Equipment

Post by freebrickproductions » Tue Jan 28, 2020 1:48 pm

NathanFromEngland wrote:
Tue Jan 28, 2020 1:26 pm
This crossing in Japan has crash resistant gates that lower from nearby cantilevers.
Honestly not sure if that counts, due to the fact it's still a railroad crossing.
They/Them for me, please.

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NathanFromEngland
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Re: Odd/Unusual Uses for Railroad Crossing Equipment

Post by NathanFromEngland » Tue Jan 28, 2020 5:35 pm

freebrickproductions wrote:
Tue Jan 28, 2020 1:48 pm
NathanFromEngland wrote:
Tue Jan 28, 2020 1:26 pm
This crossing in Japan has crash resistant gates that lower from nearby cantilevers.
Honestly not sure if that counts, due to the fact it's still a railroad crossing.
I know stuff like that exists in the US but it is very rare, but seeing them drop from cantilevers and not gates? Very interesting...
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freebrickproductions
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Re: Odd/Unusual Uses for Railroad Crossing Equipment

Post by freebrickproductions » Wed Jan 29, 2020 2:34 am

NathanFromEngland wrote:
Tue Jan 28, 2020 5:35 pm
freebrickproductions wrote:
Tue Jan 28, 2020 1:48 pm
NathanFromEngland wrote:
Tue Jan 28, 2020 1:26 pm
This crossing in Japan has crash resistant gates that lower from nearby cantilevers.
Honestly not sure if that counts, due to the fact it's still a railroad crossing.
I know stuff like that exists in the US but it is very rare, but seeing them drop from cantilevers and not gates? Very interesting...
Pretty sure this thread is for crossing equipment in places you wouldn't really expect it (like flood gates), not crossings with unusual equipment.
They/Them for me, please.

Click here if you want to submit crossing photos to the site!

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Gametrain54321
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Re: Odd/Unusual Uses for Railroad Crossing Equipment

Post by Gametrain54321 » Sat Jun 20, 2020 1:47 am





Late for getting these posted, but got some truck crossings in action.

Abandoned one:
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chris96
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Re: Odd/Unusual Uses for Railroad Crossing Equipment

Post by chris96 » Tue Jun 23, 2020 5:21 am

Here in Melbourne, Australia, standard crossing signals are often used to protect bridges and tunnels in the event of an emergency.

The West Gate Bridge in Melbourne's west has gates protecting each entrance road with Westinghouse 8 and 12 inch lights, Safetran mechs and Safetran Type 3 E-Bells. They sure could be maintained a little better though:
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.824 ... 384!8i8192
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.824 ... 312!8i6656
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.831 ... 384!8i8192
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.832 ... 384!8i8192

The Citylink tunnel in Southbank has a similar setup, but lacks bells. Instead, traffic lights are used in conjunction with the crossing signals to block traffic:
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.826 ... 384!8i8192
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.826 ... 384!8i8192
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.826 ... 384!8i8192

Strangely, the danger sign on this gate mech mentions an audible warning, yet I can't find any device that would produce such a warning nearby. I wonder what it's referring to?
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.826 ... 384!8i8192

An almost identical setup also exists at the Eastlink tunnel in Donvale:
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.810 ... 384!8i8192
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.800 ... 384!8i8192

This mast uses a standard Australian traffic light pinnacle/junction box on top:
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-37.800 ... 384!8i8192

In South Australia, the Tom 'Diver' Derrick Bridge is protected by Westinghouse lights, WCH M-Bells and (most unusually) UK style gate mechs with custom barriers:
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-34.838 ... 384!8i8192
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-34.837 ... 312!8i6656
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-34.837 ... 384!8i8192

Aldridge pedestrian lights are also used for the sidewalk:
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-34.838 ... 384!8i8192

Over in the UK, these signals are used to warn of large vehicles entering from a service road. In this video, they were malfunctioning and the lights had been taped up as a "quick fix":


It seems fairly common for railway style signals to be used at other locations such as bridges and fire station entrances in Britain as shown in this document. They even have low-flying aircraft crossings!:
http://www.ukroads.org/webfiles/tal01-08.pdf

Finally, who could forget this old Wig Wag signal at the West Chicago Fire Department?:
ImageWig-Wags at a fire station? by Michael Quagliano, on Flickr
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Gametrain54321
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Re: Odd/Unusual Uses for Railroad Crossing Equipment

Post by Gametrain54321 » Wed Jul 08, 2020 1:56 pm

Looks like those gates at the SA set-up are Energy Absorptions Systems StopGates! Pretty neat to see those in Australia. As for the West Chicago FD wig wag, I have also recorded that. Forgot to include that in my original post.


(Can't embed the link as I am replying on mobile.)
Last edited by freebrickproductions on Wed Jul 08, 2020 2:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: We now have an embed code for shortened YouTube URLs, BTW.
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LARDLOGO
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Re: Odd/Unusual Uses for Railroad Crossing Equipment

Post by LARDLOGO » Fri Jul 10, 2020 10:32 pm

Only one I can think of is these at Railroad Square in New Port Richey, FL
https://goo.gl/maps/sLQNjSrmL6x1Da4B9
https://goo.gl/maps/W8LU1oAYP31tNaY8A

They're also on the site itself. Photos were taken prior to the gates being put in.
http://www.rxrsignals.com/Florida/New_P ... ad_Square/

Also unrelated, but on an old Trainz 2006 route of mine, I used crossing signals as "storm warning" indicators.
Railfanning since December 28, 2009!
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