Express Reefers: an additional question
In the era I model, 1952, there was a consortium that had been created by several railroads and the Railway Express Agency, to manage and operate express refrigerator cars. The roads in this consortium were: ACL 49 cars, ATSF 73, KCS 25, GN 203, NC&StL 10, PFE 149, PRR 358, SAL 18, REA (Made up of REA 595, General American 750, and CWRD 274) for a total of 2504 cars.
Each of these lines turned their express reefers over to the REA. The REA managed them, found loads for them, and operated them as a nationwide pool. So a dozen roads.
Here is my question, how did an express reefer from a non-affiliated road find its way off line and across the country, AND BACK?
And to follow up, did non-affiliated lines even ever make it off line?
Let’s take the SLSF, the Frisco. I own a Frisco express reefer. Did the agent for the Frisco find a load for that express reefer that carried that express reefer across the country, and off the Frisco proper? Or did that car only ever, and by this I mean IN THE NORMAL COURSE OF DAILY BUSINESS, travel on line, and in Frisco trains?
I’m ASSuming that the REA agent on the Frisco would solicit business and fill affiliated cars FIRST.
What would prompt a REA agent to even bother to solicit business for a non-affiliated car?
So, would WE, in the normal course of events, really ever see non-affiliated express reefers in long distance trains or off line?
Comments
Post a Comment