| By: | Jimmie Fisher |
| Dates: | 6/18/2022 - 12/31/2022 |
| Album Info: | North Platt, Nebraska, June 18, 2022. Union Pacific Railroad’s Bailey Yard in North Platte, Nebraska, is the largest railroad classification yard in the world. It was named in honor of former Union Pacific President Edd H. Bailey. The yard covers 2,850 acres, is eight miles long, and two miles wide. There are 315 miles of track inside the yard.
The yard handles 10,000 railroad cars every 24 hours. 3,000 of those cars are sorted at the rate of four every minute on the two “hump” yards and placed into trains headed east or west The yard’s train operations and repair shops are operated 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The Golden Spike observation tower, built in the shape of a railroad spike, is eight stories high. At the bottom is the entrance with a museum, small video auditorium, and a large gift shop. The top floor is an enclosed observation deck with a 360-degree view of Bailey Yard and the surrounding landscape. The seventh floor allows access to an open viewing area overlooking the entire yard west, north, and east. Both of the observation decks are accessible by stairway and elevator.
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