More oldies from the archives, this time a visit to Tennessee Pass in 1984 when huge power consists, graffiti free rolling stock and cabooses were still the rule. Thanks to friend Bill Farmer for the video.
Four engines up front and six midtrain helper units - this was definitely the Rio Grande at its finest! It's too bad something like this sadly cannot be repeated in this day and age.
Great video of a very scenic line. So glad I got to spend some time in Salida scouting track and imagining what it would have looked like when running. These videos make the past come back to life.
There's a reason for that. Cabooses were on their way out in the mid 1980's and were gone from most main lines (except Virginia and Minnesota which had full crew laws) by around 1985. They disappeared about 5 years later in Canada as the labor agreements were modified. Real, portable video devices (camcorders) only came out in 1983-84 and didn't become popular and cheap until a few years later, by which time most trains were running without cabooses. The scenes in this video were taken with one of the cumbersome camera/VHS tape deck rigs.
The SPee was well known for its dirty motive power. I can recall many a unit dirty at a time in my life as a teenager bein a young railfan watchin the SP approach from the south into Mesa Az in the early to mid 70's! Loved the oscillating headlites on their road units.
Fewer locos needed, but you still need to drag all that tonnage over a 10,000 foot summit instead of slightly more than half that for Sherman hill. Double the fuel bill no matter what power you use. DP definitely would reduce crew costs over the manned helpers in use then, but the fuel cost is still a killer.
It looks like the Rio Grande's coalies were coming down the eastern slope of Tennessee Pass which was rather easy when it came to mountain grades, but it was an entirely different story on the western slope with that 3 percent and that 10,000 feet in elevation.
A lot of footage at the beginning looks to be along the Colorado River around east of Dotsero, Gypsum, Eagle area. You can see the Colorado R and hear highway noise Love the pre- deregulation era caboose, small logos dirty engines and no graffiti.
One of the many negative things to come out of the UP/SP merger.....they canned this line. At some point, the Moffat route WILL reach max capacity and they’ll need a relief valve for the excess traffic.
Dream on. The Moffat route continues to be well underutilized. Once coal traffic is completely gone, there's little reason to keep it, let alone re open Tennessee Pass. The energy cost to haul tonnage over the Rockies versus UP's much lower routes will become prohibitive no matter what eventually replaces diesels for motive power. And then there's the threat of self driving trucks. Get ready to see many more railfan favorite routes become rust streaks.
@@fmnut Yup...very little traffic runs over the Moffat. Guy across the street from my girlfriend's house works for the BNSF and he said they run one daily manifest each way over the line. Not sure about the UP however, if they run more than 10 trains a day, I'd be surprised. Oh, and then there's Amtrak's Cal Z each way. That's it. Recently, there was an STB denial for a short-line operator to re-open Tennessee due to a lack of environmental impact reports. I'd be very surprised if any deal is ever reached between the UP and a third-party rail operator - the trackage over the pass is in sorry shape. We're talking millions of dollars to get the line back in-service.
I wonder what the tare weight difference is between 100 triple-bottom steel coal gons and 100 aluminum Bethgons. I've also wondered how the seven or eight diesel powered train business model can hold up-it can't be very profitable. Great video!
Aluminum cars weigh 48 to 52,000 lbs empty versus 55 to 65,000 lbs empty for steel cars. On average you can get 10 tons more coal in an aluminum car versus steel.
I really don't think they needed to put in the new signals the searchlights did a good job I remember relative lived by the spur about 30__50 cars would go by that line is still there lumber mills gone no business
