Re: Passenger Trains: Car Cards and Waybills?

into "operations" on a freight dominated layout.

>
>1. Do you use car cards and waybills much like you would with a coal >'unit train'?

Actually, on my layout, I use actual railroad documents to put my passenger trains together. I model the New Haven, and I have in my possesion a copy of a New Haven Transportation Dept. "Passenger Train Consists" book. Using actual timetables and real documents gives me that added touch of realism that I like. This consist book tells me everything I want to know about which trains had which kinds of cars on what days of the week for 1953 (the date of the book). For example, Train 26, the "Merchants Limited" (the New Haven's top train from NY to Boston) on a Monday had, in order from head to tail:

So, I don't need waybills or car cards if I have my Consist book.

2. Are certain passenger cars spotted and left behind while the train
>assumes other cars as it continues to its next location?

Sure. Take for example NH Train 3, the "Owl", and overnight sleeper between Boston and NY. It would pick up sleepers in Providence on the way. On Thursdays, it had:

Except on Sundays, when it had a Baggage car of Newspapers from Boston that it would drop off in Providence.

3. Is there an agreed upon method of combining freight [95%] and
>passenger service [5%] into a model railroad, operating system?

Not at all. It depends on how deeply you want to get into passenger operations. IMHO, there are far too many model railroaders that see passenger trains as some kind of "window dressing": just something thrown on the layout to get in the way of the freight trains. In actuality, passenger operations can offer all the variety of freight operations with the added pressure of doing it "on the advertised". See the great "Maumee Route" articles in old MR's from the 1990's to see a guy doing it right.

4. With the "Super Chief" passenger train, are there any acceptable ATSF
>freight cars that would ever be in tow?

Have no idea about the Super Chief, but I doubt it. The New Haven used boxcars and such all the time on the lower class trains (never on the "Merchants" or the "Yankee Clipper"). But these were special boxcars with steam and signal lines passing through. The Pennsy was the same.

5. W/o car cards and waybills, how do you delay the train at each
>location since bins would not be in play as they are with car cards?

Train Orders. Write up a Train Order sheet and tell the engineer what to do, including waiting for a meet, switch out a car, etc. These can be pre-positioned before operations start if you know ahead of time what you want the engineer to do...

Paul A. Cutler III