I have found that the management usually prefer locos to be run on the rails and that they get “a bit upset” when we do anything else…
However with a little nudging and encouragement it isn’t diificult to “steer” any rail vehicle that has got off the track. The huge problems begin when the surface isn’t strong enough to take the weight. The biggest problem is if the vehicle starts to roll over. That is a good time to be somewhere else…
For many years I had dreams about riding the loco of a whole train anywhere but on the track. These included going to the shops (mall), the neighbour and so on… seriously weird as (while i have ridden cabs) I have never driven a train… Maybe that’s just as well!
I ran across the same picture. If you notice in the picture there are wheel marks in the street . The trucks do rotate so presumably the could be steared with a piece of heavy equipment. There is some kind of boom truck is the photo. Also note the chewed up steet pavement near the rear trucks where they were twisted to align with the track.
Of course this is all speculation on my part.
No, that photo’s caption doesn’t state how it was moved, but the CN SIG’s history for the loco’s involved seems to indicate they were moved under their own power.