Why do freight trains never stop after smashing through something on the tracks?
In almost every movie that I can think of that involves a train crossing with someone getting stuck/pushed onto the track the freight train always comes along to great fanfare and smashes through the vehicle (with the characters possibly escaping in the nick of time) and then keeps going.
Why do they never stop after the collision or at least start braking beforehand?
Best Answer
Inertia. A multiple ton train cannot brake on a dime.
Trains can't stop quickly or swerve. The average freight train is about 1 to 1ΒΌ miles in length (90 to 120 rail cars). When it's moving at 55 miles an hour, it can take a mile or more to stop after the locomotive engineer fully applies the emergency brake. An 8-car passenger train moving at 80 miles an hour needs about a mile to stop. http://www.minnesotasafetycouncil.org/OL/stop.cfm
So the train has to travel about 1 entire train length or more to stop, without causing a catastrophic derailing. Considering the speeds given, and the non linear speed changes, it will take a few minutes to get to a full stop, and may not be immediately detected visually. They would be slowing down, you just can't tell yet.
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Why do trains do not stop?
Because of their size, weight and speed, trains do not stop quickly, even under emergency conditions. From the time the brake is applied to the time that the train stops, it may cover more than a mile of track. This means that even well-trained workers may have no way to avoid an accident.Do trains ever break down?
Nevertheless, they run up to around 1000 miles per day and do sometimes break down, although they were designed and built to do such mileage.Can you stop a freight train?
"Freight trains aren't supposed to stop and block intersections. The law on the books says that unless there's a mechanical failure or some other emergency, trains are supposed to pass on through the intersection and not stop.Why do trains stop on the tracks for so long?
The reason trains stop, according to Bellamy, is because of a switch adjustment. \u201cThey have to pass the switch and then a carman or a switch man has to hop off and physically throw the switch (Bellamy described this as a lever on the ground) so that it changes the direction of the track.Drivers getting frustrated with trains stopping on tracks
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