Indian Railways Trains Horns: Thousands of trains run daily in India. Some of these are passenger trains while some are goods trains which carry goods. But one thing that is common is the horn of these trains. Whether it is a train carrying people or a goods train carrying goods, you can see both of them blowing their horn before arriving at the station.
The horns you must have heard are usually normal horns. But let us tell you that trains do not blow just one kind of horn. Rather, trains blow a total of 11 kinds of horns. Let us tell you what these different horns are like.
Small horn for washing
When a train needs cleaning, the loco pilot blows a small horn at the station. This means that the train is ready to go to the yard for washing and cleaning.
two little horns
Giving two short horns in a train means that the train is now ready to move. By giving two short horns, the loco pilot tells the train guard that it is time now and the train is ready to move. Then after the guard’s signal, the train starts moving.
Three Little Horns
Three short horns are given in emergency situations. When there is some emergency in the train, the loco pilot blows the horn and tells the guard that he has lost control over the train, after which the guard immediately stops the train by applying vacuum brakes.
four little horns
When there is a technical problem in the train, the loco pilot blows four short horns. You may have often heard this horn at the railway station but you may not know its meaning.
One long, one short horn
Before starting the train engine, the loco pilot blows one long and one short horn to signal the guard to set the brake pipe system.
Six times little horn
You may hear this horn very rarely. When the train gets stuck in a difficult situation, then the pilot blows the horn six times and asks for help from the nearest railway station. This danger may be due to theft or robbery in the train or when miscreants come or to avoid looting.
Two short and one long horn
When in an emergency someone pulls the chain or the guard applies vacuum brakes, then the loco pilot signals the guard to take control of the engine by blowing two short and one long horn.
Continuous Horn
When a train blows its horn continuously, this horn is for the passengers standing on the platform. It means that the train will not stop at the station and will go straight away.
horn stopping twice
When you stop twice and enjoy it, then this is for the people walking on the railway crossing. This is a message to those people that the train is about to come and they should move away from the railway track.
two long and one short horn
When the train has to change tracks during the journey, the loco pilot blows two long and one short horn to indicate that he is changing the track.