ex-BN Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> What is the method of operation of this railroad?
> In particular how are meets determined and how is
> authority communicated. With three trains running
> on a single track line with limited visibility I'm
> sure the operation must resemble full size
> railroads.

The engineers make their own meets via radio. Outbound trains take the siding. On two-train operations the inbound train will call the outbound train from Siding 3 to meet at Siding 1. On three-train operations the outbound train (engine #2, for example) will depart the zoo station upon a call from an inbound train from Siding 1 (from engine #5, for example) to meet at the wye and later the same outbound train will call the third train (engine #1, for example) from Siding 1 to meet at Siding 3 at which time the third train will depart the Washington Park station. Clear as mud? I thought so!

Nearly all switches on the railroad are spring switches. If the station masters at both ends cut off the boarding at the proper time and don't have a delaying operation such as using the wheelchair lift (#2 and #5 are so equipped) the trains rarely stop at the meeting points even though the passing tracks are only about 1½ times the train lengths. Frequently the only slow down is for the facing points upon entering the sidings, especially on #1 and #5. None of the meets have visibility of the opposing train more than a train length beyond the entering switches because of the surrounding forest and many reverse curves, some with extreme curvature. The 1½-mile 1960 extension through Washington Park to the Portland International Rose Test Garden is mostly 3.5% with compensation on some of the extreme curvature.

On real busy days there may be thirty or more trains departing the zoo station for the approximately 35 minute 4½-mile round trip. On such days it's not unusual for an engineer to put in over 40 miles on the 2½-foot gauge line.

Unfortunately the days of part railroad are numbered. After the completion of the 2012 ZooLights festival, all of the original in-zoo route except for about 500' outbound from the zoo station will be torn up and a new viaduct on a 4% grade will connect to the existing Washington Park line which will eliminate all grade crossings on the line except for the trail at the bottom end of Siding #3. After much cost cutting of plans to rebuild the 40+ year retired trestle just outside the zoo and connect to it with double track from the zoo station to possibly allow a truncated version of the present ZooLights train route, it appears that there will be no possibility of having the trains as any part of any future ZooLights. Riding the ZooLights trains has been a family tradition in the Portland area for many, many years.