Repeater signals

Another post about signals… this time the rail kind. I thought about this while writing the last post, because this is sort of like a literal signal boost.

There are two signals on the Banfield between Lloyd Center and Hollywood TC that function differently from the rest of the signals on the alignment. These signals (34R and 36R) are repeater signals. They “repeat”, or display the same aspects, as ABS signals 34 (eastbound) and 36 (westbound) respectively, but are positioned slightly ahead of the signals they repeat because those signals are around a curve.

34 R (eastbound), which is repeating the aspect displayed on…

…Signal 34

Signal 36R does the same thing for signal 36, which is seen going westbound. I don’t have a picture of signal 36, but here’s its repeater signal:

Signal 36R (westbound). Signal 36 is located around the curve ahead, back-to-back with signal 34.

The speed limit through here is 45 mph, so due to the limited visibility with signals 34 and 36 being on a curve, it would be difficult to stop a train in time if those signals were red. The repeaters give advanced notice of what aspect those two signals are displaying so operators can act accordingly and stop if necessary.

Notice how there are no ATS magnets near the repeater signals, but you can see the ATS magnet (it looks like a small box between the rails) in the picture for signal 34. Going through a red on 34R or 36R won’t automatically bring your train to a stop, however, you still treat like all other red signals and stop your train prior to the repeater if it’s red. And if you run a red on a repeater signal and then trip the signal after it, I believe that counts as two rule violations for going through two red signals (which I’ve never done..).