Wrecks

Railway Post Office (RPO) clerks processed mail on moving train cars. It was hard and dangerous work. Railway mail cars were often placed directly behind the engine, putting clerks in danger during wrecks. Companies used wooden mail cars that were not as safe as metal cars, but were cheaper. These cars often turned into death traps after a wreck, filled with scalding water from steam engines or set ablaze when oil lamps and wood stoves tipped over or exploded on impact.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Railway Post Office
• (RPO)
• Smithsonian
• National Postal Museum

[intercityrailpal]

@intercityrailpal Instead of having the income from the mail service our passenger trains lose money. All this because the highway lobby runs the transportation policy for the country. Instead of 20 mail cars on a trains we have 50 trucks with 50 drivers 50 fuel tanks. And the car behind the engine is a baggage car or your coach or sleeper.

[intercityrailpal]

Today 50 thousand people are killed on the nations highways. I guess it dropped this year people are driving less, to 35 thousand! Years go by and Amtrak kills no one. Except for bad drivers that pull out in front of their trains! Now the mail goes by truck, a three cent letter that used to be delivered by passenger train in hours goes by truck and costs how much? Overnight is ten dollars! Fuel costs are killing the post office, mail is snail mail.