STOP, LOOK AND LISTEN

e [Music] [Music] stop look and listen a legend a landmark in railroad history a command to make even lady drivers stop and take notice it was more than half a century ago when the reading railroad first displayed the sign which was to become a byword of railroad safety throughout the country today modern high-speed automobiles need even greater protection reading provides it with electrically operated flashing red lights automatic crossing gates and alarm bells to warn and protect the modern motorist but the technological improvements are only a variation on the theme of safety which the original sign spelled out be safe a railroad exists only to serve its passengers and shippers in the old days that meant getting there on time even under difficulty railroads have progressed quite a distance since those old days in mileage technology and Common Sense they understand now that the first rule of a well-run railroad is safety reading railroad whose sign became part of the English language has pioneered in safety because it understands safety what is safety it is man and machine in action against negligence it is the elimination of human error and mechanical failure wherever they may occur safety begins with The Men Who Run the trains it is ensured by the training and continuous instruction of such men as Ken Alexander flagman on our NP eight Freight who is symbolic of all the workers on the railroad it's a beautiful thing to Ken to be hurtling through the picturesque Countryside of [Music] Pennsylvania along the cool blue Rivers the air is clean and fresh you lean your head out of the Caboose window and breathe it in while you check your train as any good Railroad Man Would for Ken knows that safety is important he knows it because reading told him so when he first showed up as an applicant for the job a potential Breakman before putting him to work reading made sure Ken himself was in good working order first he receives a thorough physical examination from a company doctor yes you're in good condition Ken but it takes a lot more than that to work on the railroad today safety is of the first importance in the discharge of Duty the first rule in the book and an essential part of every other Rule and it was the first thing Ken learned in class at the rules examiner's office where reading sent him to learn the operating rules of the railroad an essential part of a Breakman job is signaling here Ken is being taught how to communicate instructions by standard gestures which are familiar to all railroaders Ken was sent to the centralized training center in Reading Pennsylvania as are all new train service employees here he learns by doing veteran employees of the railroad instruct job applicants in the importance of safety and the use of safety methods reading's emphasis on safety and its proud safety record has brought it many awards which are here for kend to see the honored Harryman certificate and the national Safety Council [Music] award this school is equipped with many of the devices Ken will use later a full-size mockup of a freight car is available right in the classroom under the guidance of an experienced instructor he learns how to grasp the ladder how to climb and how to stand on the brake platform when applying the brakes there's a proper technique for applying the brakes and this is the place to learn it safely on a mockup with a helpful instruction beneath there's lots more to learn before you're a qualified Breakman for instance the right way to throw a manual switch you've got to have the proper stance to give yourself adequate leverage and keep your feet in the clear the switch goes into the correct position smoothly it's easy when you know [Music] how another part of a Breakman job is coupling the air signal and steam hoses between cars The Knack in making a coupling with safety is to bend the hose back slightly so that the couplings join with ease but schooling doesn't end in the classroom Ken is given on the job training by older skilled break men who give him the benefit of their years of experience now the training Ken has had in the classroom is put to use the this is no mockup it's a real freight train and the engineer up ahead is depending on his signals but reading doesn't let their new men go at alone the watchful eyes of an older employee check every signal Ken makes and he makes them correctly Ken has passed his first on ground test one of the most intricate jobs a Breakman has to learn is coupling of cars at a safe speed so that Freight and Equipment are not damaged you must know how to apply the break skillfully and at the right time after a fellow employee has instructed him Ken tries it himself now here's where timing is important and Ken has listened well to his instructions a good job on the first attempt something to be proud of Ken took part in another feature of reading safety program he attends a 5-minute discussion on safety at least once a day there suggestions may be made better safety measures developed new ideas which can make the railroad ever more worthy of its outstanding record Family Safety rallies initiated several years ago have become a tradition with the railroad growing in attendance each year Ken's family is brought into the safety program too they're regularly invited to families safety rallies Mr Joseph a fiser president of the reading railroad talks with the employees and their families about importance of safety in the operation of a [Music] railroad Family Safety rallies of this kind are an important Link in that strong chain of safety which all of us working together are ever welding Sounder on the reading railroad these meetings are especially important because safety is a personal thing it's the business of every one of us it's the business of every employee it's the business of his family his wife and his children as well after all safety begins in the home it's a family affair or there's no measure of value to an individual or to his family of a life saved of Happiness of injuries avoided or the relief of Mis escape the company and its employees working together are carrying on a continuous program of safety education recognizing that the greatest of all safety devices is a safe man the lessons reading employees and their families learn at the rallies are remembered at home Ken's wife warns him to watch his step yes Watch Your Step Ken You've Got A Real Fine family to protect there at work Ken gets acquainted with a unique classroom a rolling classroom in a railroad car which moves to all parts of the system in the car is a full set of controls which operate just as they do in the cab of a locomotive the latest pneumatic and electron pneumatic air brakes and the electric devices which regulate the flow of current to locomotive traction Motors and Ken along with the other employees is instructed in the use of these [Music] devices these safety devices are representative of the unending investment in safer equipment which coupled with your own safety training help make your job safer reading doesn't ask you to accomplish safety alone it's given you a lot of AIDS and the most modern safety devices those automatic signals are the traffic lights of the railroads only safer in a way for once your train has passed one of these lights it automatically turns red and remains that way warning all trains behind to stop until you are a safe distance [Music] ahead there are automatic flashing light signals safety gates and alarm Bells warning motorists ahead of your arrival records show that this device has made an outstanding contribution toward eliminating accidents at grade Crossings protection for the children of your community this is a familiar site riding cars in the classification yard at St Clair the Breakman rides the car down the grade into the yard here is where this man's classroom lesson in the operation of a handbrake pays off he controls the speed of a car and brings it to a safe stop this avoids damage to equipment and [Music] commodities as cars are assembled in the departure yard trains are made up ready to roll out over the rail roads here in Rutherford yard special devices are being used to control the movement of [Music] cars after being inspected cars are moved from the receiving yard by a switcher to the top of the hump each Journal box is lubricated with hot oil [Music] then the cars are uncoupled according to their classification passing over the hump into the yard for train makeup as the car rolls down the operator in a remote control tower controls its speed as they pick up momentum the operator presses a button activating retarders which press against the flanges of the wheels to slow cars to a safe [Music] speed he also controls the switches throughout the entire yard routing the cars into their proper tracks according to their classification [Music] electricity works in many other ways on the railroad too Ring's extensive electrified service is operated from Power supplied by overhead catenary wires and directed by this centralized power control the power dispatcher is on guard at the central control it's his job to send power where it is needed at all times more than 375 trains a day operate over this line that means constant vigilance for the dispatcher you see Ken reading is doing its part too supplying you with the most modern equipment and safety [Music] devices but safe men and safe equipment also require safe road bed over which to operate that is why such great emphasis is placed on maintenance of whe work here's a case where a tie needs to be replaced that means it will be done by experienced Crews using mechanized maintenance equipment spikes are first removed from the old tie notice that clothing is secured at the bottom and safety shoes are worn now another machine raises the rail just high enough so that the plate can be removed from between the rail and the tie with the rail up the plate is removed [Music] safely the next step is to remove the tie itself and this is done by another Special Machine one of many which reading uses to do the multiple jobs of maintaining its track and Equipment the machine pushes out the tie easily from beneath the rails and the men remove it from the the road [Music] bed now we're almost ready to put in the new tie but first the stone ballast must be made ready this machine makes space in the ballast for the insertion of the tie on a job such as this the rules require the wearing of safety goggles the new tie is positioned in this [Music] space when the spikes are spotted a machine quickly drives each one into the [Music] tie now the ballast around the tie is tamped down with a power ballister this fixes it solidly in place and the tie is ready for [Music] use one tie a small unit in the overall facilities but no detail is too small for the watchful eye of safety as a safety precaution the maintenance crew clears the rails while waiting for the train to pass they inspect it signals are exchanged between train crew members and the maintenance [Music] men the rails themselves are under constant inspection the operator of the Audi gauge can actually hear an imperfection at the rail joints faulty rails are removed and examined by expert technicians in readings Laboratories here everything from rails to rubber gloves is tested constantly protective gloves for use when working with high voltage must offer Perfect [Music] protection in the Great Locomotive shops at reading the heavy repairs are made here huge locomotives are lifted in accordance with proper safety signals by ground man to crane operator the locomotive is lifted and moved to the other end of the shop where it will be lowered to another track for repairs during this operation all employees are cleared from the [Music] area the use of this 250 ton crane enables us to move huge local motives quickly and efficiently to the proper area for maintenance the Ingenuity of The Men Who operate shops like these has turned out this novel emergency wagon equipped to offer complete Fire Protection in the car shop repair men are protected by goggles and gloves while driving rivets no this isn't a man from Mars it's one of our welders fully protected with helmet and gloves for safer and smoother riding wheels are Tred periodically by this special machine as a constant reminder of all the things being done in the name of safety and to seek still safer methods employees meet regularly plaques on the walls attest to the safety results obtained There She Goes a reading freight train carrying products of mine Mill Farm and Factory the vital contribution your railroad makes to the Commerce of the great industrial area it serves and the nation as a whole we're the bridge between the rich industrial east and south the connecting link between the East and West our key location also makes us an important originating and terminating Line This is Port Richmond in Philadelphia the largest Tidewater terminal in the world it is owned by your railroad [Music] Ken here ships from throughout the world take on and discharge their cargos making Port Richmond a true gateway to the world here grain from the Midwest is pouring into the [Music] hole here's ore which has been delivered by ship being loaded into Freight cars for transp exportation to steel [Music] mills merchandise of all description is handled at these docks with men who know their job it's easy to transfer tons of cargo from Doctor ships the winch along with the crane have made the once laborious task of loading and unloading a simple [Music] process for scrap metal huge electromagnetic cranes are brought into action the metal clings to the magnetic head which carries it to the cars there the current is cut off and the metal drops into the hold reading service also includes delivering Freight by car float in the Philadelphia area Port Richmond has one mile of dock space one mile of peers along with all the other facilities for shipping to and receiving from all over the world Port Reading situated on New York Harbor is another great terminal owned by your railroad Ken it handles thousands of tons of coal [Music] here A whole carload of coal is dumped at once into the barge calcium chloride is being added to alleviate the Dust for the safety of the employees on the dumper tons of coal are dumped safely in a matter of [Music] minutes this coal is on its way by reading tug to Manhattan Cole symbol of American industry riding by the symbol of America you know this scene Ken the Crusader long and sleek and modern cruising smoothly into readings North Broad Street Station in Philadelphia the passenger trains have come a long way from the cow catcher and coal smoke days there's the usual group of passengers waiting on the platform to board the train a reading conductor and train attendants are on hand to help them aboard watch your step passengers call it courtesy and appreciate it but we know it's more than that it's our safety program in action you're helping to make a careful last minute inspection and terminal test of the air brakes before you leave the yard to ensure safety on route that coal and steel machinery and merchandise are in your hands Ken and must be be protected just as carefully as the men and women on the passenger trains you have been promoted to a rear Breakman in the few months since you received your first instruction at readings centralized Training [Music] Center you're part of a great organization of men and women [Music] in the offices in the shops and out along the right of way men such as Jack Myers who handles the vital job of Chief train dispatcher on the Philadelphia division they're all part of a great railroad which sustains the flow of Commerce to the nation's Industries [Music] yes Ken you are part of a dynamic team producing essential transportation service already a lot of safety training has unrealed behind you like the endless track behind your Caboose you know that real safety is a personal thing and that the price of continued progress is continued [Music] effort but you know that the safety of you and your fellow fellow employees is worth that price a thousand times [Music]