While driving home from work this afternoon, I saw a coal train parked in the siding just east of Walcott Ia. One of the new GE locomotives was in the lead, and one was on the rear. I had never seen the IAIS use this before. Is this something they are testing?
I don’t know much about the IAIS, but I can offer a comparison to some local railroads near me.
The Providence & Worcester Railroad operates most of their locals with a locomotive(s) on each end, not because they are active, on the contrary they’re just dead in tow, but because it saves the crew the added time of having to run the locomotive around the train whenever they want to access a facing point siding. Instead, they just use the loco on the rear.
Also, if the train reverses direction during the trip (maybe the IAIS coal train does?) then having a locomotive on each end saves a lot of time running it around the train. Amtrak’s Vermonter does this because it reverses direction in Palmer, MA, when switching between the CSX and New England Central mainlines.
From what I have read on the IAIS group’s list, the GEs are equipped for distributed power operation.
Jeff
When you say “equipped for distributed power operation”, just what equipment is that?..some kind of radio transmitter and receiver gear?..or?..thanks, Bill
Radio gear and computer software.
Jeff
The answer is YES, but not testing. The IAIS does DPU some of its trains. Usually the GE’s with the unit coal, but also the unit ethanol run. Although this weekend I thought I saw a DPU’d pair of SD’s, or GP’s. I was too far away from the tracks (two blocks) to makeout the roadnumbers but the shape was definitely not of the GE’s.
More information can be found on the IAIS fans’ Yahoo groups site. You will also find others who are more informed than me.
Coal train left the Walcott siding Monday AM with 2 GE’s leading heading west. Saw it later in Ia City.