ON THE COVER
Some idea of the magnitude of Ernest Norris Yard at Birmingham, Ala. (which the Southern now has more than half completed) , may be gained from this sweeping panorama of just one part of the new yard project-the main retarder and the 56-track classification yard.
From the main retarder (in the left foreground) the track leads down into the classification yard, branching out through group retarder locations to the classification tracks. In his glassed-in office at the top of the retarder tower (at far left), a retarder operator will regulate the speed of the cars as they roll through the group retarders.