Question for the RR guys

[Pushbutton2]

I'm in SW Iowa on I-29, headed North. We are passing a BNSF Train. We passed a bunch of rail cars. Hopper bottom. 2 locomotives, bunch more cars, than 2 more locomotive in the lead. I don't remember if there was an locomotive at the rear. Wasn't really paying attention.

Just curious about that configuration.

Iowa is fairly flat.
I've seen 2 or 3 locomotives in the front and 1 or 2 pushing. Don't recollect seeing any in the middle....

[Mike Honcho]

Was there a question in there?

[M16]

I saw the same thing the last time I was In Iowa. Didn’t give it a second thought.

[SmTx]

https://gorail.org/infrastructure/nuts-bolts-why-is-there-an-engine-in-the-middle-of-that-train

[drwilliams]

They have been doing it for several years now. They do it out of Somerville almost daily for trains running west to Sweetwater. Out in Sweetwater they will double up empty coal trains to run them back to the mines up north 2x4x2 configuration. The reason they are doing this is to run trains at 9-10k foot and more tonnage along with cutting crews. They figure if they can double up 5 trains a day that saves 5 crews that they can cut off. A company that makes 22 billion a year is trying to cut half the man power so they can try to make 44 billion a year. It all boils down to greed.

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[sqiggy]

The trains I see running thru here might have 2 or 3 engines up front, one in the middle and 1 or 2 on the back end. I bet they are more than 2 miles long. God forbid you get caught at the crossing. You’re gonna be there a while!!!

[scotth89]

Look up the term precision railroading. The carriers care nothing about the customer or employees anymore. It’s their way or the highway.

[kae006]

They’re called mid-dp motors and it would have also had power on the rear. The most common you’ll see will be doubled up empty coal grains with a 2-4-2 configuration. Basically they took two 2x2 trains and put them together to make one mega train to run back to the mines empty. Union Pacific utilizes mid distributed power more often as they average longer trains. On the train you saw most of those motors would have been isolated and not making power.

[kae006]

Look up the term precision railroading. The carriers care nothing about the customer or employees anymore. It’s their way or the highway.

Mids have been around long before PSR was a thing

[drwilliams]

They’re called mid-dp motors and it would have also had power on the rear. The most common you’ll see will be doubled up empty coal grains with a 2-4-2 configuration. Basically they took two 2x2 trains and put them together to make one mega train to run back to the mines empty. Union Pacific utilizes mid distributed power more often as they average longer trains. On the train you saw most of those motors would have been isolated and not making power.

Not all will have power on the rear with ones in the middle. I have built them with power on the rear and without power on the rear. Depends on tonnage, length and if certain kinds of cars are in the trains and what direction the train is running. There is alot of veribiles that go into building one of them.

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[kae006]

Not all will have power on the rear with ones in the middle. I have built them with power on the rear and without power on the rear. Depends on tonnage, length and if certain kinds of cars are in the trains and what direction the train is running. There is alot of veribiles that go into building one of them.

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You’ve built BNSF trains with H/E and mid power but no DP?

[drwilliams]

You’ve built BNSF trains with H/E and mid power but no DP?

11 years as a conductor for them. I have built them anyway you can imagine.

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[kae006]

Question for the RR guys

11 years as a conductor for them. I have built them anyway you can imagine.

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Interesting, can’t remember the last time I saw a BNSF train running with that config, maybe a car or two behind the DP but that’s pretty much it. Regardless, S/W Iowa and hoppers lends to it being a coal train and a doubled up empty.


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[drwilliams]

Interesting, can’t remember the last time I saw a BNSF train running with that config, maybe a car or two behind the DP but that’s pretty much it. Regardless, S/W Iowa and hoppers lends to it being a coal train and a doubled up empty.


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They will double empty grain trains as well. They will run the loads south either 2x1 or 2x2 and when they leave the port of Houston or Eagle Pass all power will be on the head end with 2 sometimes 3 depends on if they need power for another train or not. What the OP seen was an empty grain train sounds like that more than likely came from down here being all ours goes back to Iowa 90% of the time. Makes sense with 2 in the middle and 2 on the head end

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[kae006]

They will double empty grain trains as well. They will run the loads south either 2x1 or 2x2 and when they leave the port of Houston or Eagle Pass all power will be on the head end with 2 sometimes 3 depends on if they need power for another train or not. What the OP seen was an empty grain train sounds like that more than likely came from down here being all ours goes back to Iowa 90% of the time. Makes sense with 2 in the middle and 2 on the head end

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I guess I didn’t realize they ever ran empty grain 2x2x0. Are most of the ones you run back to Iowa KCS powered or BNSF? I know they run a lot of trains from the KCS to the IAIS via the BNSF through Iowa.


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