P80 with Extreme Wheel Slip Grinds the Rails While 212 with Interstate Waits to Pass

P80 is a local that transfers cars between Chamblee and Gainesville and mostly uses older equipment like these SD40-2’s. On this day the train was very long and one of the units was having problems with the anti-slip system. This section of track is on a hill and long trains often have trouble with it. 154 for example has broken knuckles several times on this hill. If you walk down the track at Suwanee you will find several broken knuckles left rusting by the side of the tracks. Sand is used to help the wheels get traction but in this case the problem was not sand. Once the wheels start to slip the anti-slip system should have stopped the wheels from spinning but it didn’t. The crew was aware of the problem, the noise was intense and the sparks could be seen from the front of the train. The proper course of action would have been to stop and ask dispatch for assistance. Additional power could have been added the the front or another train could have pushed on the rear to get them over the hill. Once