Our crews installed a 1,300-foot wind fence to mitigate wind speed along our track in Abo Canyon, New Mexico - just one example of our ongoing work to build a safer, stronger network and make it more resistant to weather-related impacts. Abo Canyon is a mountain pass through the Manzano Mountains in central New Mexico. We've had track there since 1908, when our predecessor railroad, Santa Fe, built the line. Abo Canyon experiences high winds, always moving in one direction through the pass. The screen is designed to reduce the wind's impact on our operations. "This project is a great example of how safety and service go hand in hand," Craig Rasmussen, assistant vice president of Engineering, Services and Structure said. "The concentrated wind gusts at this location coming out of Abo Canyon have caused problems in the past. Installing the wind screen will help by lowering the wind impact against the side of trains, which will help keep trains safely flowing through the area." #freight #logistics
Great to see BNSF continuing to invest in this practical, though not inexpensive, safety measure. Railroads and the AAR have been investigating wind blow over risks and solutions for at least 40 years. Other solutions include wind speed restriction systems, which interface with the dispatching office to slow or stop certain trains based on real-time localized wind speed, direction, and train consist.
Awesome Job, BNSF Railway! "Friends Of BNSF"
Wow, what a great idea. Especially on a bridge where you’re much more susceptible to high winds.
Excellent!! Hopefully the Wind Fences/Screens at Browning and E. Glacier, MT are still providing the same protection from the 80-100 mph winds.
Innovation paying off! Congrats and well done.
Now this is “out of the box” thinking. Great job.
Per Starup Sennicksen You mentioned sometime back about stack’s being blown over in a canyon.
Very cool, I'd be interested to see other potential designs for a wind shield.
Very cool, Great initiative in Abo Canyon, and a solid step towards safer and more reliable rail operations. Innovation meets infrastructure resilience!
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3wVery interesting. I'd love to see a tech paper written on the design and its results.