I worked the yard in Edgemont when the RCP&E started. I was impressed with the increase in business and how quickly they upgraded their infrastructure for a smaller railroad. It was an improvement over the DM&E
You know exactly how to do it. Right time of day, sun angles are direction. It's always the key for the most quality videos or photographs. Awesome job!!!
Love watching them between Chadron and Crawford, NE on that old jointed rail of the old Cowboy Line. Those SD40-2s look good even in the Orange Plague.
Yes, that 72 pound rail down to Chadron is so neat! And yes, pretty much any power/paint schemes can be appreciated on that piece of railroad. Maybe even GEs someday...?
@@CVisionContributor I don’t know why the Orange Plague hasn’t upgraded that section all the way to the interchange with BNSF in Crawford. If I’m not mistaken that is their only Class I interchange west of Pierre??? I sure miss the DM&E though. I really thought they were on their way to being the first new Class I in a hundred years.
If was not for the shutdown of the DM&E powder river basin project because of the city’s of Mankato and Mayo Clinic in Rochester, the DM&E likely could have become the first major class 1 railroad in many years but sadly since that project was shut down, it killed the DM&E halfway through the project due to them using funds they likely did not have that they likely would have made if the project did get complete but since it never was completed and they racked themself into debt since they no longer had the money they could have gotten they had little choice but to merge with another class 1 which was CP in 2009.
The railroad that got me interested in trains! Working in buffalo SD I would often head down to Belle trucking cattle to the sale barn, got to know a couple of drivers and had a cab ride, miss the DME.
So that's how it happened! We've been through Buffalo while traveling between RCPE/DME and BNSF lines during video trips. Thanks for sharing a little bit of your story.
You're welcome! And yes, that Mansfield Sub is pretty cool. But, it was extremely difficult to see anything moving north of Redfield, even then. 50/50 shot on them running at night when they did go, so there were many days spent in the Redfield Super 8 waiting for something to happen...
I see their SD-40-2s heading east though Springfield towards New Ulm MN on the CP line a lot lately !!!! I have to say.... the Locomotives are the cleanest I've seen on this line since DME repainted they old C/NW engines....... Love the paint scheme !!! well done.
Seeing the RCP&E locomotives run out to Mankato has sure become a more common occurrence through that portion of the Tracy sub since the RCP&E has trackage rights. I believe these days they run at least one Eastbound and one Westbound train a week out to Mankato and back. Seems like they do it most of the times at the end of the week (Thursday, Friday, or Saturday). The reason I believe that this happens is that they get and interchange cars to and from UP in Mankato. CPKC usally just transfers their cars to the RCP&E at Tracy. However I think though sometime last year when I think CPKC knew that RCP&E would run out to Mankato in a day or so would just drop their transfer cars for the RCP&E in Mankato in one of the yard tracks if they did not have to run on the western end of the Tracy and just return light power back to Waseca from Mankato. I think I have seen CPKC do that a couple of times in recent years.
The DM&E colors were certainly a nice sight to see romming the mainline at that time. Unfortunately that ended I believe by the beginning of 2014 when CP started running their GEs on the line. The last of those colored locomotives was likely when the transfer to RCP&E happened in the last week of May of 2014. I think that was the last time those colored locomotives ever passed on the Waseca and Tracy subs.
Thanks, Andrew! The wacky "schedules" allowed for some different shots. As long as they got into a pattern during a particular week, you could kind of figure out when you'd be seeing a train.
Awesome Brookings shots! That evening eastbound was a great one, seems rather tough to catch a daily eastbound through Brookings these days! They happen, but not as often as they used to!
Glad you liked them! Back when we were shooting the video, there was absolutely no set time for trains to run on that end of the railroad. It was before the Mankato trains started running. So you just drove out there and hoped for the best. Once the Mankato trains started, they really got strict about call times.
@@CVisionContributor yeah it’s quite different from what it was in the beginning. Pretty hard to catch a daily eastbound anymore, unless something happens in the yard that pushes it to the am like one last week did. If they got more of line east it would add more traffic and hopefully get more trains rolling in the daytime!
The reason for why not much traffic happens for eastbound RCP&E trains these days headed towards Tracy is likely because of CPKCs PSR which likely effects the call times and makes CPKC run more on a schedule so to speak. Since CP (now CPKC) started doing that a few years ago, it’s likely cause that to happen. Alot of traffic back when the RCP&E started was likely transferred between CP and RCP&E as the CP portion of the Tracy sub was pretty busy as well. But likey as times rolled on RCP&E could have found better ways of getting products moved to various other railroads other than CP (now CPKC). I know now since the Mankato train was created that RCP&E that all those cars get transferred to UP in Mankato. That move back when the RCP&E was first created was likely done by CP. I’m sure today PSR plays a factor in that traffic now between running the eastbounds to connect with the call times when the CPKC and UP trains are likely to show up and the swap of cars can be made.
Seems like before and a few months after the RCP&E takeover that foreign power was common. I believe CP and RCP&E at the time just left whatever power was on the train at the transfer point back at the time to either railroad. I don’t think though that this happens anymore. Still though it seems CPKC will run foreign power one in a while on their portion of the old DM&E main.
Thank you! Depends on exactly where you are on the railroad, but safe to say 2-4. However, there are parts of the railroad that don't see daily trains. They only go down to Dakota Jct out of Rapid City 2-3 times per week. Depends on traffic and crew availability.
Beautiful Video of the RCPE RR and I love shortline Railroads more than Main Line Railroads and You should do a Video of the Wisconsin Southern ( WSOR) In Wisconsin
That's an idea! We'll keep that in mind. But, to answer your question... unsure of the title, but there will be more RCPE in the future. Thank you for your inquiry!
Thank you, Jack! Basically, find a train and stick with it! On the PRC, trains meet at Wall and JC Siding. JC is about 20 miles west of Fort Pierre. Crew changes take place at Pierre and Philip. There are no set call times for trains on the PRC. The daylight job out of Belle Fourche on the Black Hills Sub is the easiest to catch. They depart Belle Fourche mid-morning during the week for a turn to Rapid City. Usually back in Belle by the early evening. The night job runs up to Colony. As for south of Rapid City down to Dakota Junction, that operation is usually late evening/nighttime. Pretty tough to catch, as they only make the trip two or three times per week. Crews layover in the hotel in Chadron, then return north on their rest.
Most of the DME and CP units in the video were repaying horsepower hours shortly after startup, and didn't stick around. The ICE 6400s that RCPE received from CP have all been painted. At least, every unit that stayed on RCPE. It's a sea of orange now!
Hello, Joe. As far as we know, all the locomotives in IC&E and DM&E colors on RCPE have been repainted. There were plenty left in the early days of the railroad, however. They started painting fast in 2017-2018.
That particular employee was very friendly to railfans. He ended up getting himself into some serious legal trouble a few years ago, and is now in prison.
Mine as well. I grew up with them in western S. Dakota. It was a special time when I was shooting the Cowboy Line video, and really cherish those memories.
Yes, sir. The RCPE operates the entire “Colony Line”. The Colony to Rapid City portion of the line gets plenty of use. Rapid City to Dakota Junction is another story… But it’s all still active thanks to the bentonite traffic.
@minnesotarailfan11 It’s cool that you checked out the yard in Rapid City. Definitely a neat place. But as Trains N Sirens said, there isn’t much activity. However, the train from Belle Fourche seems to be fairly consistent. It generally shows up midday into the early afternoon. From what we’ve seen, the trains to and from Dakota Junction generally run at night. The HURC and RCHU trains that run over the PRC can operate at any time. You can also catch the yard jobs in Rapid City if you visit during their regular working hours. Thanks for watching the video.
About 10 years later after this railroad was created by the Genaseeing and Wyoming and it’s still has not changed much. SD40s still seem to be the main locomotive on that railroad today. I kind of wonder how long it will be before they get some dash 8s or dash 9s roaming this railroad and the SD40s begin to be phased out. I will say ever since this purchase I wonder how much interchange between the now CPKC and RCP&E occur now. I wonder if they still interchange the Auroa ethanol with CPKC these days. I think they still might since I continue to keep seeing Ethnol running along the Tracy sub heading out to the west end of the line regularly about 2-3 times a week. Not sure though. I will certainly say though the mixed freight traffic that once used to run the CP Tracy sub before this purchase has never been the same since. Seems like UP in Mankato these days give the RCP&E a good chunk of cars a week when the RCP&E makes there weekly run out to Mankato. I do honestly think though something may happen at some point where CPKC may sell the western half of the Tracy sub to RCP&E since I have noticed a lot of upgrades have been occuring on the east end of the Tracy in regards to railroad crossing equipment and some rail replacements here and there. Not noticed much of that occurring on the west end of the line (Mankato to the west). Who knows though since I believe there are 2 Ethanol plants out on that part of the line. But now that it’s CPKC since the CP and KCS merger, who knows what may happen. Knowing though that the RCP&E is going strong and the CPKC expanding since the merger, things could change either in changes in ownerships or possibly an increase in train traffic. Still it’s sading to see the old DM&E colors fall that once were so common 10 plus years ago.
The RCPE is doing some great business. Their UP Mankato interchange traffic has grown considerably. We wish the railroad well. And yes, the rumors are true. At some point, GEs will come to G&W’s “pheasant country”. Thanks for watching.
It's a miracle the PRC survived the 1980s. The future looks a bit brighter today, however. As long as bentonite and cement keep flowing, RCPE should be just fine.
Hello, Greg. CP purchased the IC&E and DM&E during the Fred Green era. It’s still unclear if that regime was interested in building into the Powder River Basin. CP wanted the Kansas City and Corn Lines back, and buying the entire DM&E/IC&E system was the only way to accomplish that. It also prevented a competitor, namely CN, from getting their hands on that trackage. When Hunter Harrison was brought in to replace Fred Green as CEO in 2012, the entire operating philosophy at CP changed. In the end, DM&E’s west end lines got the ax.
I don't wanna say "dislike", 'cause I like trains, and pictures of trains. Moving pics of trains are a fave. This has plenty of that...but...where's the cohesive narrative? Constant jump cuts extremely annoying: both jarring, and makes satisfying train spotting impossible. Beautiful countryside, intriguing railroad...both could have been presented a bit more riveting manner.
Thank you for the comment. This video wasn’t meant to be riveting. Nor was it meant to provide any sort of narrative. It exists to take you on a journey from one end of the RCP&E, to the other, and to provide comprehensive documentation of the railroad. As for the editing, pretty standard style for this type of video. It simply may not be for everyone. Personally, we’re in it for the beautiful sunrises, sunsets, animal encounters, extreme weather events, and... the sound of SD40-2s.
