Page 10 - May June 2009
P. 10

The End of an Era
The end of an era is taking place in Colorado, especially along the Joint Line. The use of SD40/SD40-2s by BNSF and Union Pacific is coming to an end. The introduction of new, more fuel-efficient locomotives like the GE ES44DC has meant that those tasks formerly undertaken by these locomotives are rapidly dwindling. From an average of two to three different trains per day, then down to about one, dwindling down to one or two a week, down to practically nothing. Thus ends a period of about 40 years when the SD40/U30/C30-7 ruled the roost along the Joint Line.
Prior to the introduction of the SD40/U30C family, most of the coal traffic along the Joint Line was hauled by a mixture of F units, GP7s and GP9s, along with GP30/35s and early GP40s. Four­axle locomotives were sufficient, as the coal traffic was not particularly heavy and was moved in regular manifests. With the late 1970s oil crisis, the demand for coal for power plants suddenly exploded. The Rio Grande suddenly had a large amount of coal to move to these and other industries. And customers wanted that coal in a hurry.
To make a start on moving the large amount of coal needed, the Rio Grande purchased a fleet of SD45s, the 3600 hp locomotive that EMD had hoped would take over the high horsepower market. However these locomotives were not particularly successful due to the power plant, but Rio Grande managed to sort out these problems, and their SD45s ran on for many years.
Colorado coal was very popular with the power generation plants because of its extremely low sulphur content and also its very high BTU output. However, due to the difficulty of getting the coal out of the Rocky Mountains, this tended to make it quite expensive. After all, trains had to climb over three different mountain ranges (Sawatch, Wet and Front Range).
The discovery of coal in the Powder River basin, which was quite near to the surface and could be mined by the opencast method, put a much cheaper coal on the market. Although Powder River coal does not have anything like the same BTU output as Colorado coal, it still has the very low sulphur content, and a number of power plants changed over to it. By this time both EMD and GE had brought their 3000 hp loco­ motives onto the market, in the shape of SD40s and U30Cs, to be followed by the upgraded SD40­2 and C30­7s.
Santa Fe and BN bought large numbers of these locomotives, and these started to appear on the Joint Line very quickly. Rio Grande waited until the 1980s before ordering SD40T­2s, which proved ideal for all the tunnels encountered between the Colorado coalfields, Denver and the Joint Line.
For the next 10–15 years, loaded coal trains would leave either Rio Grande’s North Yard or the BN yard at 36th Street and head towards the 20th Street junction, South Denver and the Joint Line. Helpers were added either at the various yards or at South Denver.
These trains usually had four or five locomotives on the head end and two helpers at the back. If the train caboose did not have roller bearing axles, the helpers were placed ahead of it.
So with something like 21,000 hp pulling and shoving for all they were worth, the train would head south towards Palmer Lake. Even with that amount of power, the trains could still only average about 8 miles an hour for the 48 miles between Denver and Palmer Lake. Well, the trains were on average about 100 cars, each carrying about 100 tons of coal, so you can work out the weight for yourselves.
The helpers were taken off at Palmer Lake, which, if they were forward of the caboose, used to involve a bit of running
Ron Carlisle
 around so as to get the caboose back where it should be. The two helpers then went back to Denver light engine. As a matter of interest, the crew of the helper locomotives usually sat in the rear cab of the rear locomotives when pushing up the slope.
I was talking to a retired DRGW engineer the other day, and he said that getting called for a day of helper duties was a quick way into insanity. It was so boring, pushing up the hill, running back, and almost immediately helping another train. You could almost guarantee a 12­hour shift working on that duty. Getting the dispatcher to allow the crew to have a break and something to eat was a major problem. All the dispatcher wanted to do was move trains, and crew comfort was not his priority. Apparently, the number of engines that suddenly developed major faults about halfway through the shift was amazing. Also amazing was the rapid “recovery” that the engine used to make. Eventually the dispatchers got the message. Then it became easy money and everybody wanted the duty.
The power allocated to these trains was not always restricted to one railroad. A mix of Santa Fe and BN locomotives was quite often seen at the head end of such trains.
At times, the Joint Line was very busy with these coal trains. Since all had roughly the same amount of power, they used to keep the same distance apart when working uphill, unlike today, where UP coal trains are often seen almost running up the rear coupler of the BNSF train in front. It was possible to see coal trains interspersed with manifest and quality service trains working their way up to Palmer Lake.
By the 1990s the new generation of power was starting to appear on the class 1 railroads, starting with the SD50s, then SD60s (remember the 100 Oakways BN had on lease), then SD70s and C40/C44s, which started to take over the coal services. By 1993, wide cab locomotives started appearing too.
By now “part” of Southern Pacific, Rio Grande coal trains started to receive a mixture of SP and DRGW SD40/SD40T­2/ SD45/SD45T­2, the SP ones being in a somewhat shabby and poor mechanical state. These continued, along with the BN and ATSF, to work the coal trains until gradually the new C40/44s starting coming on line. These C44­9Ws, which included distributed power, started the end of helpers on the Joint Line.
Whereas the helpers used to be attached in Denver, a number were stabled at the old Big Lift Yard to await their next turn, a duty which gradually diminished with the arrival of the new locomotives.
By the time Helen and I came back to Colorado, as visitors originally and later as, we hope, residents, the number of SD40/SD40­2s had diminish drastically. U30C/C30­7s had long gone, unfortunately as they were one of my favourite locomotives, and only the EMDs remained.
By 2008, the number of trains using the EMDs had dropped until just before Christmas 2008, when their appearance was as rare as hen’s teeth.
Since January, I have not seen a single SD40/SD40­2 along the Joint Line. They were still being used along the Front Range Sub of BNSF up until late January, but even there they have disappeared.
This is only a short report to let you know what is happening with regard to the SD40s as I know quite a few of you, especially JB, like me, liked them.
They will be sadly missed.
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