Traffic was a bit unusual this week. While the usual events (the food giveaway on Friday at the community hall, for example) backed up traffic and crowded parking lots on schedule, commuters Monday morning had a bit of a surprise.
As you may have noticed, the railway had a large machine parked near the railroad crossing. It appears to have been a production/switch tamper. Tampers appear to be a pretty important part of rail maintenance- they keep the rail smooth and reduce the risk of derailment.
Around 7:30 on Monday morning, the machine was removed from the rail. This process involved both specialized ramps, a winch, a rather sizable truck/trailer, along with a crew of three.
They didn’t seem to waste any time, nor did they have too much difficulty. But it was seven thirty on a monday morning, blocking the most convenient/practical/timely way to work for anyone leaving on their morning commute.
The short eternity of winching the machine up actually only lasted until 7:50, after which traffic was allowed to pass through.
It was a fairly respectable line-up of cars and the crew was polite, offering a “Thank you for your patience” as they waved folks through.
Trego's Mountain Ear 