Signals

The Tide uses two types of signals, bar signals and green/yellow/red/lunar color light signals.  The mainline tracks are fully signaled for operation in either direction.

The bar signals they use are two aspect, single head, two segment traffic light signals.  I didn't snap off a picture of the housings, so I'm not sure if they are Eagle's or not, however, they are the same exact style and make as the Norfolk traffic lights as you can see from the photos.  They are used everywhere the trains run mixed in with vehicular traffic, west of the private R-O-W of the west end, to Harbor Park.  Train movement is usually independent of the traffic light cycles except for a couple of key intersections.  The two photos on the right happen to be one intersection where the train signals echo the indication of the traffic lights.  I didn't catch a photo of it, but when the traffic light signal goes yellow, there is NO bar signal lit.

        

All mainline signals are three aspect color light transit style signals except as noted below.  The signals follow standard railroad practice with red on the bottom.  Color light signals are used from Harbor Park east to the end of the line, and the short section of the very west end where it is separated from street traffic.  These signals are made by US&S.

       

    Standard intermediate signal between Broad Creek and Military Highway.

The R/Y/G color light exceptions are two aspect signals at the ends where the tails are single tracks, and they use lunar/red signals to indicate occupancy of the tail track.  The only other place I saw a two color L/R signal on the mainline was on the WB track before a crossover adjacent to the shops, presumably for the same reason as they are used at the ends (probably used when trains exit the yard onto mainline - although I don't know why a regular 3 aspect signal could not have been used).  They are used both on the mainline to control movements into the tail, and in the station to control train movements out of the tails.  Interesting note, the two switches used at either end are spring switches.  The spring can be clearly seen in the photo below, as well as the "SS" sign.  The spring switches can be manually thrown so they can run "on the left side".

              

The few tracks in the yard that are signaled use two aspect signals, and they are segmented heads in contrast to the unibody styles used on the mainline.  They were all red when I went by, so I do not know what color the non-red aspect is.... judging from the one on the mainline tho, it is probably lunar.  The pictures below are all in the yard/shop area.

  EB signal         WB signals

At every grade crossing where there are crossing gates, the operators also have a gate status indicator.  These lunar lights flash as the gates are going down, and go steady once the gate is in the full down position.

 

Where the trains mix with cars, and the city does not want you to cross the tracks because a train is coming, they use the following no turn signs.  Most are no left turn signs, with no right turn signs being used at SB Ballentine Rd and at the EVMC station so EB Brambleton traffic can't cross the tracks while turning onto Colley.

 

In a few places, HRT uses a standard hand-man signal to instruct pedestrians as to whether it is safe or not to cross the tracks.  The picture below shows one such a signal at EVMC, looking from Brambleton across the tracks.  The "hand" signal is for people crossing Brambleton, and the "man" signal is telling people it is OK to cross the tracks.