Can trains reverse? do they ever?

Question

thanks for your time

Answer 1

Yes

Answer 2

never

Answer 3

Rango gave a terrific answer...

In my experience, I've had the CalTrain passenger train back up three times because they missed a proper-stop.  The conductor runs to the back of the train and clears the engineer to back up.

Just FYI CalTrain (and many commuter trains) is a Push-Pull system... when heading SOUTH, the locomotive is in front, but when heading NORTH, the locomotive is in BACK (though there IS a driver's seat in the new "front").

GOOD LUCK

Answer 4

yes. you can back up from any cab on an LRV but you are not allowed w/o Controllers permission  and somebody flagging you and i believe is the same on any train.

Answer 5

Yes, and they do all the time. That's how they get back to where they came from.

Answer 6

Yes, they can go both directions.  That's why you often see locomotives back to back, so they can switch tracks and go the other way without having to find a roundhouse to turn around.

Answer 7

Trains are designed to run in both directions:

Most diesel locomotives have a cab at each end. With locos that have only one cab they are often coupled together cabs outward so the formation can be driven from either end.

Some smaller locos especially in Europe have a cab in the centre with controls at either end.

Many passenger trains now consist of multiple units, that is, sets of 2, 3, 4 or more carriages with built-in power unit(s) instead of non-powered carriages hauled by a locomotive. At either end of this formation there is a driving cab.

Switching from cab to cab is a straightforward matter of the driver locking the controls at one end, walking through the unit to the other end and unlocking the controls there.

All this obviates the need which existed in steam days for the turntable (steam locomotives could run in reverse but were easier to drive when facing front) and the run-round (a second track alongside the track at a platform to allow a loco to change ends on the train).

Answer 8

Yes the do, usually for short distances because it is not as safe as having the locomotive on the leading end.

If a train has to go in reverse for much distance, usually on a branch or deadend line the crew will "run around" the train at the first opportunity and place the power on the head end.

Mechanically, the locomotives dont know the difference as the actual drive is electric so it is not like reverse in your car where it is slower than forward.

Added later: yes that can be done, in order to make any type of back up move authority must be obtained from the the train dispatcher and they will authorize a reverse movement. However if a train operator misses his stop, that can be a fairly serious infraction and is likely to be discipliined, unless you mean by just a short distance of a car length or something.

Answer 9

They can, but in actual practice, it fouls up the dispatching and operation of the line so much that most railroads in the US frown heavily upon the practice.

In some places, the freight trains literally run 5 minutes apart -- if one had to back up, the ripple effect would be felt for miles.

To give you an example:  A train lost power in one of its locomotives in Iowa.  So they had to back up with the decreased power to the nearest siding where they could take care of the problem [they finally turned the ENTIRE power consist -- 7 locomotives -- around so the defective locomotive was the last in the line].  Well, this only took 12 hours to complete, and traffic in BOTH directions [and it was double track, Bi-directional CTC, etc.]  finally got straightened out about 4 days later. . .I think you get the picture.