Editing Centralized traffic control (section)

{{Short description|Railway signalling system}}
{{More citations needed|date=December 2018}}
{{Globalize|article|Anglophone|2name=[[English-speaking world|the English-speaking world]]|date=July 2014}}
[[File:Thorn Desk Facing Northwest 2.jpg|thumb|Active [[Union Switch and Signal]] Co relay based CTC machine at THORN tower in [[Thorndale, Pennsylvania]]]]

'''Centralized traffic control''' ('''CTC''') is a form of [[railway signalling]] that originated in North America. CTC consolidates train routing decisions that were previously carried out by [[local signal operator]]s or the train crews themselves. The system consists of a centralized [[train dispatcher]]'s office that controls railroad [[interlocking]]s and traffic flows in portions of the rail system designated as CTC territory. One hallmark of CTC is a control panel with a graphical depiction of the railroad. On this panel, the dispatcher can keep track of trains' locations across the territory that the dispatcher controls. Larger railroads may have multiple dispatcher's offices and even multiple dispatchers for each operating division. These offices are usually located near the busiest [[railroad yard|yards]] or [[railway station|stations]], and their operational qualities can be compared to [[air traffic tower]]s.