The short hood of American locomotives is known as the front and offers better visibility for the crew. The design evolved to offer more protection in collisions, and Canadian railways were the first to use the short, wide hood as the front. The short hood also houses equipment and a chemical toilet for the crew. The safety cab design offers additional protection in collisions.
The short hood of an American locomotive is commonly known as the front of the locomotive. Typically used to house electrical and mechanical instruments, as well as a chemical toilet, the low, low hood offers additional visibility for the engineer and crew compared to the taller version known as the high hood. Earlier versions of the short hood were narrower than the full width of the locomotive, using walkways and ladders along the side for easy entry and exit. Later versions use a full-width bonnet that runs the full width of the locomotive. This design is known as a safety cabin due to the additional protection it offers the train crew in the event of a collision.
On earlier locomotives, the long end of the locomotive was used as the front of the train. This was done primarily to protect the crew in the event of a collision. It was later determined that the better vision allowed by using the short hood as the front of the train was safer.
Many railroads converted their inventory of short high hood locomotives to the lower hood design to allow for better vision. Canadian railways were the first to use the short, wide hood as the front of the locomotive, thus the short, cab-width hood is often called the Canadian safety hood. This design is commonly, though in error, called a wide-cab locomotive by railroad fans, as the cab is no wider than the nose or hood.
Railway equipment can often be stranded on the tracks for long periods of time. In cases like these, having a chemical bath on the short hood is a nice addition to the train. Some locomotives also have small coolers mounted inside the short bell in which bottled water is kept for the crew. This was occasionally kept in the caboose, however the removal of the caboose has required train crews to adapt and carry more of their necessities on the locomotive’s short hood.
Collisions are a reality on the railway. Crews often find themselves in a dangerous spot when the vehicle a train collides with is a tanker or other type of vehicle that could burst into flames or explode on contact. Even wood, pipe or bricks can fly when hit and reach the cab of the locomotive, injuring or even killing a member of the train crew. The safety cab helps protect crew members by placing more protective steel between the crew and the collision.
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