NS-535

[Bill Richardson]

   Today I went to Woodson Bend for a nature outing, and to get a few photos of locomotives if possible.  I went down in the woods to some waterfalls for a while.  When I got back out to the tracks, I was just about to an open area when  I saw a headlight, and the front of a locomotive.  I assumed it was a train coming, slowly.  Then I saw that it was a single locomotive, and nothing else, moving slowly southbound, with the cab in the rear.  It was NS-535.

   I was surprised to see that engine by itself, just going about 25 miles an hour, maybe 20, and backwards.  I'd like to know what the story is on that situation.

   It looks like this engine has an air conditioner on top the cab.  Reminds me of travel trailers.  I looked up NS-535 on NS-Locos and found a photo of a GP-30, with that number, and NW markings.

   I looked at some Railpictures photos and saw a different engine, and a different designation--GE  B32-8.  Then I went to the roster page on jreb and found the designation of Dash8-32B, and a photo of a locomotive like the one I saw, which is the first time I have seen one.  Very unusual, for me.

   I stopped at Burnside before I went out to Woodson Bend and found a train parked there.  Some work was being done on the crossing.  I noticed that the second engine was different.  I didn't get close enough to see the model designation completely.  It was an SD something, a hybrid.  It looked like an SD-60 with a wide cab.  I didn't make a photo.

   Mainly, I wonder if anybody can tell me about the NS-535 I saw traveling by itself.


   Also today, a train passed by me with a CSX engine leading two NS engines.   Diversity seems to be big thing these days, so I guess it applies to railroads too.  That makes twice in about a month that I saw a CSX engine leading a train on the CNO&TP.   I don't know how that works.  I guess NS pays a lease fee to use a CSX engine that was handy.  I'm not a former RR employee, so I don't know why I keep seeing other road names on NS track.  It doesn't bother me; just curious.  I don't mind a variety of locomotives to photograph.

[nsgelocos]

From what I understand a single locomotive cannot travel more than 30 mph due to the way forces work on just one unit.

Someone who knows for sure about that will have to chime in on that.

[csx6900]

From what I understand a single locomotive cannot travel more than 30 mph due to the way forces work on just one unit.

Someone who knows for sure about that will have to chime in on that.

I always heard it was because of track circuits.  Apparently just 4 axles versus a whole train of axles is significantly less likely to trip a crossing or block signal.  But that's just what I've heard so I may be wrong.

-Evan

[Matt L]

From what I understand a single locomotive cannot travel more than 30 mph due to the way forces work on just one unit.

I'm not sure if that's true. I've seen some light engine moves travelling at 40+ mph.

[Matt L]

   Also today, a train passed by me with a CSX engine leading two NS engines.   Diversity seems to be big thing these days, so I guess it applies to railroads too.  That makes twice in about a month that I saw a CSX engine leading a train on the CNO&TP.   I don't know how that works.  I guess NS pays a lease fee to use a CSX engine that was handy.  I'm not a former RR employee, so I don't know why I keep seeing other road names on NS track.  It doesn't bother me; just curious.  I don't mind a variety of locomotives to photograph.

CSX was probably repaying horsepower hours to NS. That was already happening up here in NY (because NS and CSX interchange at Buffalo) on occasion, but the run-through power on both RRs has increased in recent years. Here's a handy explanation of how horsepower hours work:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horsepower-hour

Repayment of horsepower hours also explains the increase of BNSF, UP, CN, CP and even KCS engines on NS.

[Bill Richardson]

Thanks for the answers.    I wonder where that lone engine was going, by itself?