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It’s Kentucky Derby time, and CSX railroad is taking the corporate special passenger train out to the races. But more special than the train is that signal protecting the siding switch track. I had only read about them, and this is the first actual picture I have seen of a “Doll-Arm Signal”.
Normally a signal is placed adjacent to the track that it controls. In rare circumstances it is impossible to place the signal immediately adjacent to the line that it controls. If the signal is placed two tracks over, the signal mast has a “Doll-Arm” sticking out to indicate that there is a “dead” track in that position that the signal does NOT control. In this case, the siding track is not controlled by the tall signal, but the second track over… the main line… is the track the signal is active for.
The siding track also has it’s own exit signal. It is that dwarf signal on the ground under the doll arm, that indicates when a train may leave the siding out onto the mainline.
Railroad trivia you never knew… You will all be qualified Gold Train engineers, soon!