Question of the Night: What are the least-appreciated work vehicles?

"boxrocket" (boxrocket) 09/07/2015 at 00:44 • Filed to: question of the night, qotn, railopnik

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Happy Labor Day Eve! Many American Opponauts are off tomorrow (I’m not), so in the spirit of Labor Day, tonight’s question is fairly straightforward: what are the most underappreciated work (industrial and commercial) road vehicles?

I’m going with railroad track maintenance trucks:

Rail usage - especially freight - is grossly underappreciated and scarcely acknowledged, except after a rail accident, or when a train crossing a road causes a minor delay in traffic. These trucks help workers inspect, maintain, and repair/replace the critical components in the rail system, and I have profound respect for the fine folks who do that work.

I’ve ridden Amtrak (America’s nationwide passenger train service, for those outside the U.S.) quite a few times, with no major incidents, and few delays, so I have a more personal attachment to the work these trucks are used for, but I also recognize how much freight trains move, and how FUBAR we’d be without them.

One of these types of trucks (the HD pickup, not the big rig) could have been a good suggestion for the hypothetical “travel across the world in a modern vehicle during WW2” from a prior QOTN.

bob and john > boxrocket 09/07/2015 at 00:54

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Forklifts. With out them, can you inagen how much extra space we would need?

Birddog > boxrocket 09/07/2015 at 01:07

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I would go straight out for Locos.

EMD-X test machine pictured.

My Uncle retired from Electromotive right before CAT bought the whole deal.

Shoop > bob and john 09/07/2015 at 02:06

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This is a really good answer

Alex from Toronto > boxrocket 09/07/2015 at 02:36

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Street sweepers. Roads would be filthy without then

Slant6 > Birddog 09/07/2015 at 04:33

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I like how they’ve used essentially the same body since the gp7.

TheRealBicycleBuck > boxrocket 09/07/2015 at 06:24

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There is no better way to get across the plant with a set of samples or some basic tools than a Worksman bike with a basket. Thousands of plant workers ride one of these every day.

boxrocket > Birddog 09/07/2015 at 08:01

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Great answer, but I wanted to stay within road vehicles. Non-road vehicles are for another day.

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > boxrocket 09/07/2015 at 22:56

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Municipal snowplow/dump truck