I worked from home today and took the long route to my favorite coffee shop and caught two UP fallen flag engines in the yard The CNW unit was "leading" a hostler move at around 30 miles per hour. Grabbed it best I could UP is still getting every engine they have up and running. Roseville is being tasked to install PTC on everything. Even the old Dash 8s and last night I saw a Dash 9 trailing on a stack train. It was the first Dash 9 I've seen in Roseville in at least 2 and a half years. The have reputations as bad smokers and so are kept out to keep CARB happy.
As far as I know all the majors are power short, but UP's big problem is a couple hundred sidelined SD90/43MACs. The guy I know that works in the Roseville Diesel shop said they're taking SD60(m)s and 8-40c units that haven't had a revenue or even work train mile in ages, applying chewing gum, bailing wire and PTC and throwing em out on haulers and Turns.
With my telephoto zoom I could just make out a train parked in the woods behind some parked freight cars. It was on the old Victoria Sub, better known as the "Macaroni" and waiting to come out onto the Sunset Route to head into Houston. When I saw the headlights come on, I knew it was about to start. And here it comes, out on the mainline.
When the Gettysburg and Northern has to use all 3 locomotives on a single train, you know it's heavy.
Yes, this is ex-Reading line. It is owned by Pioneer Railcorp. It interchanges with CSXT in Gettysburg, and Norfolk Southern in Mt Holly Springs. http://pioneer-railcorp.com/get.html This shot was taken as train headed back south, leaving Mt Holly Springs at the Ahlstrom plant. Usually trains have two units, with a third on occasion. #107 is ex Conrail/ex PC, #1001 is ex IC, and #1755 is Ex Algoma Central/ex VIA/ex CN
It is Ahlstrom Filtration. They produce paper filters for various products/industries. The hoppers are actually for another industry that is south of here, Premier Chemicals in Aspers. They have a siding with room for 4 hoppers, which is trailing point in this direction. They were probably coming back from interchange with NS, or switching the PPG plant in Mt Holly, where they run soda ash to
