a blockade is in theory an effective action, if you can actually defend it when challenged. what's the logic, though?

the ultimate in effective actions is, of course, the sit-down strike. with a sit-down strike, the company is crippled - it can't even hire scabs. it has to negotiate, or fail. but, what is the key factor in ensuring that a sit down strike is effective? it is that the strikers can actually prevent the police from entering the building. even with a sit-down strike, they're still fucked if the cops can just move in and arrest everybody for trespassing.

a blockade could potentially work for the same reason as a sit-down strike - it can cripple production. it hits them where it hurts. that's what you want, so it's smart in a way.

but, the next question is "can we protect the blockade?", and the answer is that you never can. they can snipe you from the trees if they have to. they can water cannon you from the sky. once you get to the inevitable stage of actual conflict, there is no way to hold a blockade against a military or even a police force. it is a losing tactic, without question.

the protesters would need to build substantive fortifications over the tracks, somehow. they'd need to treat it like trench warfare and have some serious background in how to do it.