I’ve watched trains Between Portland,Or and Eugene,Or for many years and have never seen so many with units on the rear. For several weeks I’ve seen trains with two or three units up front and one or two pushing from the rear. I am not a railroader so this seems strange to me. Can anyone explain this new way of operating? The Willamette Valley does not have any steep grades that I’m aware of.
I suspect these are detour trains via the Oregon Trunk. They are likely DPU’ed between Roseville and Eugene, just as they normally are. With the slide above Oakridge, some UP traffic is running via the OT, the Dalles, Portland, and Albany to Eugene.
Mac
I saw a manifest UP train yesterday I think with the DPU on the rear,that was a first for me to see in this part of the country…I wandered the same thing…
UP is trying to incorprate DP system wide. expect to see more of this. Fuel conservation being the key.
How would that effect fuel useage? They’re the same horsepower, no matter which end of the train they are on.
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Allows for longer, heavier trains. Longer trains (so long as the physical plant can accommodate them) mean fewer meets, fewer acceleration/deceleration cycles, more loading of the units. Diesel-electric locomotives deliver their best fuel consumption per horsepower at full or near-full throttle, not at intermediate notches.
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Allows for smoother train handling, fewer slack run-ins/run-outs, again saving on acceleration and deceleration cycles.
RWM