> This portion of the RailRoad has always been operated by competent professionals
> and no matter what you "Railfans" believe its the same way today.


First of all, I am not much of a railfan, or so I've been told by some who claim they are. But the technology and workings of the railway do still fascinate me; even in my fortieth year as a "professional" (as you put it). I have to consider myself very lucky to have had such an interesting Career.

So - Speaking as a "professional"; Any railroader who does not recognize every single day; that mistakes and accidents can and do happen, to even the very best of us without any warning at all - IS NOT much of a professional - nor much of a railroader. Worse yet, he/she may not be long for this life either. Railroading is an inherently dangerous business. And being "Professional" exempts no one from error - period.

Actually, most accidents that I have investigated over the years had resulted from not just one persons singular mistake, but from a whole chain of mistakes by several dedicated professionals. The truth be told, such chains of mistakes made by professionals happen every single day. Sometimes the chain of error and consequence, adds up to a disastrous accident and loss of life.

If I have learned anything in my forty years, it is that the secret to safety is to interrupt that chain of error and consequence in as many places as possible. That means absolutely devout vigilance on everybody's part to avoid mistakes; even while that is too often still not enough.

We must also use every conceivable safety appliances imaginable, to break the chain of consequence for us whenever we fail at it - which we will. Of course, those safety appliances much then be designed and maintained with that very same absolutely devout vigilance; with absolute devotion to very tough and rigid safety design standards.

But most of all, safety requires that railroad managers provide the most straightforward operational schema possible, to keep the opportunities for error as few as possible. This oddball track specific (rather than route specific) clearance arrangement on Donner, complicates the operational schema, adding more opportunities for error, thus increasing inherent risk.

I criticized UP on that basis. They should wait until all the tunnels on the route meat clearance requirements. Running unqualified trains on the route now, constitutes foolish corner-cutting on the part of a management, that is in too big of a hurry to run things more efficiently (as they have supposed). So if "Safety First" really is their motto as they so claim; why then, are they putting efficiency first - ahead of safety!

OPB