Car Forwarding on the 4th Subdivision -- Part Four: Switch Lists

In this final car forwarding post, I am discussing switch lists, which, somewhat ironically, are how I first started with operations.

GN switch list form I created
 in Word and used in a
Seattle modular group 

To start with a definition: switch lists are widely used railroad forms used to plan and record car movements. While used in a variety of different ways, all switch lists have spaces to identify cars and destinations - the essence of car forwarding.

Prototype switch lists are nearly universal, used by railroads from their beginnings until the 1990's. Typically the form would be printed on card stock with one form using a half sheet vertically at 4.25 X 11 inches. By using a switch list, the conductor would have one sturdy and convenient sheet to work from, leaving the waybills in the caboose. Examples can be found online such as this Great Northern prototype Form 55, found at the gn-npjointarchive.org, incidentally, a great resource for researching all things Great Northern or Northern Pacific. Examples of prototype switch lists can also be found at railrodiana sources: train shows, swap meets, specialty bookstores, or eBay.


To create switch lists, one can just photocopy blank ones, either prototype ones or the generic one available to subscribers on the Model Railroader web site (How To>Track Planning & Operation> Operating paperwork for David Popp's New York, New Haven & Hartford layout). I found that it was relatively easy to create my own authentic looking switch list by utilizing Word features such as tables and text boxes. I included a simplified list of AAR car types on the form. When I was satisfied with my version, I took it to the copy center and had it copied onto "buff" card stock.

Just as switch lists were used prototypically in a variety of ways, they can be used in different ways by model railroaders. As a member of a modular group in Seattle, my first experiences in operations were with switch lists. During "slow" periods when our layout was on display, I would identify switchable "industries" from the group of modules at that show and add rolling stock to spurs to be picked up. Then, I would list appropriate cars for the industries in the order of the destinations on my switch list. I would also include the pick-ups in the list or as a separate list at the bottom of the form. Then I would make up the train in the yard and run it based on the switch list's list of cars to set out and pick up at the various industry locations. While having trains continuously running around our layout for display was our main goal, I really enjoyed sneaking in some operations during  "down time" such as in the late afternoons.

Switch list on the 4th Subdivision

Now, with my GN branch line railroad in the attic using sequence operations, I am still using switch lists. While car cards determine the destinations of my rolling stock, I find that switch lists are helpful in planning the action. As seen in the photo, I am using a slightly smaller version of my switch list (two-up horizontally) and mini clipboards to hold the paperwork. One example of the use of switch lists in my current plan is at the following point in the sequence:

Step 5: Road Switcher sets out and picks up for Box Spur, Elevator Spur and Team Track; returns to yard with Pick Ups from Greenrock Turn.

I list the set outs and the pickups on the switch list, planning the action; in this case, two cars to set out and three to pick up. My car forwarding system using both car cards/way bills and switch lists was somewhat inspired by David Popp's videos on MRVP. Here is one with an overview of the process (including an introduction to the use of switch lists) that can be viewed for free without subscribing: Switching the Southbound.

Switch list example from
Tony Koester's book

Another way that model railroaders can use a switch list is to aid in yard sorting. As I don't have a substantial yard on my railroad (yet!), I am using an example from Tony Koester's Kalmbach book: Realistic Model Railroad Operations-Second Edition to demonstrate this usage. His process is to first list the cars in the order that they arrived in the yard on the switch list. Then, as yardmaster, designate yard tracks for different destinations (and trains) and notate on the switch list (based on information from waybills). In his example, track #1 is "propers" (to be delivered in town). Track #2 is "shorts" (to be delivered within the division). Track #3 is "throughs" (cars going beyond the division). Then, using the switch list, the cars are blocked into trains, ready to be sorted into station order.

Both prototype and model railroad switch lists are versatile and useful forms that can be an essential part of car forwarding. Switch lists provide a simple introduction to car forwarding for a beginner in the operations "game." Even for an "old head," or one striving to be one, switch lists have the potential to be powerful tools.