(4) SPECIFICATIONS AND UNIT TRACK WORK SCHEDULES FOR CONTRACTING MAINTENANCE WORK

Owing to the abnormal conditions under which maintenance of way operations have been conducted during the past two or three years, increased attention has been given to the possibilities of contracting certain work. This tendency has been given an added impetus on account of the marked differential between the wages which the railways are required to pay their maintenance of way employees and those prevailing in other industries requiring similar skill.

While many roads have resorted to the cost plus form of contract in handling their maintenance of way work, this plan is in effect little more than a recognition of the contractor as a labor agent, the work being done as heretofore under the immediate direction and supervision of the regular railway officers. Such forms of contract are not considered to come within the limits of contract work which the Board of Direction had in mind when assigning this subject to the Track Committee. The Committee has, therefore, confined its attention to the consideration of those classes of track work which lend themselves to accurate measurement and which are subject to contracts based upon specific prices for given units of work.

While a considerable amount of maintenance of way work can be so arranged as to permit of such measurement and some railway officers even go so far as to suggest that all maintenance can be so measured, the Committee has confined its attention this year to the preparation of specifications and unit schedules for those classes of work which lend themselves most readily to unit measurements. Specifications and unit schedules are therefore presented for (1) the laying of rail, (2) the stripping of track, the removal of ties and the respacing of ties and (3) for ballasting.

SPECIFICATIONS FOR THE RELAYING OF RAIL

(1) The railway company's authorized representative shall arrive at a clear understanding with the contractor as to the force to be employed, the speed with which it is desired to have the work proceed, and the general traffic situation in the territory to be relaid, in order that proper plans may be made to proceed economically with the work specified. Prior to starting the work the contractor shall notify the railroad company's representative a sufficient time in advance so that speed and

traffic restrictions in the territory in which the work is to be performed may be arranged with the operating department of the railway company. (2) Rail must be closed for all scheduled passenger trains and as soon as possible after arrival, for all freight trains.

(3) Rail may be closed temporarily for the passage of trains during the hours while the work is in progress, inserted according to the standards of the railway company. All connections left in the track over night must be made with rails of full section and standard angle bars or joints. The railway company shall provide and the contractor shall pay for competent flagmen during the continuance of this work, to flag in accordance with the rules of the company for the protection of the work and traffic.

(4) The railway company will unload and distribute all rail, joints, bolts, spikes, tie plates, rail anchors and other materials to be inserted in the track.

(5) The contractor shall provide all tools needed in connection with this work.

(6) The railway company will provide the necessary inspector or inspectors and the instructions of such inspectors regarding the quality and type of work to be done shall be complied with at all times by the contractor.

(7) The contractor shall supply the necessary foremen and labor to prosecute the work properly and in such numbers as may be required by the Chief Engineer or his authorized representative, and at the request of the Chief Engineer or his representative will remove any foreman or man not satisfactory to the railway company.

(8) Trains must not be permitted to use the track on tangents with spikes out of more than two consecutive ties and not more than six ties to any one rail, or on curves with the spikes removed from two consecutive ties. Proper gage must be maintained and all ties on which the rail does not have a full bearing must be tamped up and spikes driven down to avoid bending the rail.

(9) Track must not be allowed to go over night with spikes drawn in advance of the work.

(10) All spike holes must be plugged prior to adzing ties for rail or tie plate bearing.

(11) Ties must be adzed carefully, giving full bearing with the least possible cutting of ties. The bottom of the rail, the tie plate and the bearing surface of the tie shall be cleaned before the rail is laid. When replacing rail with rail of the same section, unless changing or adding tie plates, only two rows of spikes may be drawn, provided proper gage is maintained; in replacing rail with different section, three or four rows of spikes shall be drawn, as is necessary.

(12) Tie plates, when furnished, must be applied in a workmanlike manner at time rail is laid to avoid unnecessary spiking and must be so placed that the shoulder is in contact with the base of rail or the splice bar for the entire length of the shoulder.

(13) Metal expansion shims must be used to provide for the proper openings between the rails and a thermometer shall be used to determine the thickness of the shims to be used, in accordance with the standards of the American Railway Engineering Association.

(14) At the close of each day's work all joints shall be full bolted, the bolts made tight and the rail full spiked.

(15) Necessary gaging must be done at the time rail is laid and should conform to the railway company's standard practice.

(16) Old rail must be left parallel with the track with joints uncoupled and all old bolts, nuts, spikes, tie plates, joints, etc., must be gathered up and left in neat piles on the ground, separated as between usable and scrap material in accordance with the railway standards, convenient for picking up by work trains.

(17) Excess material distributed for rail laying must be picked up by the contractor and taken ahead where it can be used.

(18) In laying rail on tangents the staggering of joints must be provided and in laying rail on curves care must be taken to put in short length rails at proper intervals in the low rail and to maintain the proper stagger throughout the curve.

(19) As far as possible all joints should be kept out of street and road crossings, using long or short rails for this purpose.

(20) Rails must be spiked in full to each tie. The inside and outside spikes shall be as far apart as the face and character of the tie will permit. The inside spikes shall be on the same side of the tie.

(21) All spikes shall be started vertically and square with the rail and so driven that the face of the spike shall have a full hold on the base of the rail. Spikes must not be straightened while being driven.

(22) Spikes must be drawn carefully with a view of using them again.

(23) All switches, frogs and guard rails must be placed in accordance with the railway company's standards.

(24) Switches must be left in proper adjustment, special care being given to bending of the stock rail.

(25) The contractor must restore and secure promptly all stockguards, crossing plank, or other facilities displaced by reason of the rail laying, and must replace all safety and foot blocking removed in changing. out switches, frogs and guard rails.

(26) The contractor is to understand that any work not specifically mentioned in the specifications, but which is necessary, either directly or indirectly, for the proper carrying out of the intent thereof, shall be required and applied, and he shall perform all such work just as if it were particularly delineated or described. Unless specifically mentioned above, all work shall conform to the standards of the railway company.

UNIT TRACK WORK SCHEDULES FOR RENEWING RAILS OUT of Face Suggested form of unit track work schedule to be compiled from data collected by making a series of time studies of actual rail laying performances.