Learn about Railroading in North America
The OTLR Committee’s mission is to provide rules that ensure the safe, uniform, and economical securement of commodities transported on open-top railcars for the benefit of the rail industry, their shipping customers, and the general public.
Committee Website: https://aar.com/standards/OpenTop.html
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) is the organization which sets the standards which allow freight traffic to seamlessly interchange between North American railroads.
[Read more…] about Association of American Railroads (AAR)
A coupler is the device which allows two adjacent pieces of rolling stock to remain connected in a train such that it can be quickly released without stepping between the equipment.
A drawbar connects two cars (units) semi-permanently. Unlike a coupler, which allows two cars to be separated quickly, separating drawbar-connected cars requires tools to remove the Y47 pin holding the drawbar into the yoke.
A wheelset consists of one