Why run a short train?

[TSS]

Today’s Q327 is four cars long with two locomotives. A couple covered hoppers, an empty bulkhead flat, and a scrap gon. Why even run it? That has to be a huge money loser...

Edit: I originally typed 326 by accident. I meant 327.

[ConrailDetr​oit]

......a huge money looser can be a huge customer pleaser. If the RR works that way.

Engines for the next day's counterpart?

[Talk]

Today’s Q326 is four cars long with two locomotives. A couple covered hoppers, an empty bulkhead flat, and a scrap gon. Why even run it? That has to be a huge money loser...

I recall Q327 running with 7 cars to Waverly and Running Light to Chicago. Once there is a reason to run, they won't just stop halfway. The crew is on duty, why waste their man-hours.

[adams_aj]

Logistics. Might need the power in another place.

[Saturnalia]

A big component of PSR is balancing crews and locomotives. So it runs anyway. If you don’t run Q327 today you still have to pay a crew to cab to Chicago, and lose 48 hours of locomotive time. Might as well run the power to keep the balance, and you have to pay the crew anyway.

[M.D.Bentley]

Well maybe that's the power for the next train in the other direction .

[ns8401]

......a huge money looser can be a huge customer pleaser. If the RR works that way.

Engines for the next day's counterpart?

The basic concept behind PSR as I understand it is supposed to be that whatever cars are supposed to be going in X direction and there’s a train going that way those cars make it onto that next train. This doesn’t actually work this way necessarily but the idea is sound on paper. Once people missing cars or miscounting cars or any number of other human factors come into play those cars go nowhere.

[A No.1]

Precision Railroading. All about schedule and customer service. Not to mention Dwell-time on cars and making all the reports look good on paper.

[SD80MAC]

What if one of those 4 cars was yours? Would you be happy if your car sat an additional 24 hours because they canceled what was supposed to be a scheduled train?