AARR wrote:They pull freight with those too. Last I heard they were averaging 3 round trips a week with about 30-50 cars per trip. Train crew seems to like them.
For a short period they had a coal contract and would use 5-6 units on those unit trains. But the F-units didn't hold up too well under that service. Break downs were common and they often ended up dividing the train into 20-30 car blocks to get them to the interchange/plant (can't recall which).
At the moment it is down to one trip a week. 20-30 cars, BNSF is underbidding an already low KJ bid.
The true story of the coal contract:
Ameren built a spur to the KJ to provide competition at it's Duck Creek Power Plant. Union Pacific won the contract to haul coal to Duck Creek, with KJ handling the last 20 or so miles from Peoria to the plant. Union Pacific provided the motive power, KJ just put a crew on it and delivered it. KJ spent a fair amount of money rebuilding the track to the plant spur, and it is the fastest portion of the KJ.
When BNSF won the contract back, they had to do a major rehab on their route to the plant. KJ handled the first few trains into the plant because BNSF wasn't ready. BNSF refused to provide motive power, so it fell to KJ. One of the F9s was out of service, so it fell to the remaining F9, 4 GP20s, and a GP8. The maximum train I think they got up was 35 or so cars. Usually one or more of the GP20s would die, and the GP8 had a problem keeping it's cooling water where it belonged (also had a problem with the anti-wheelslip equipment). More than once, somebody had to go back and run a troublesome GP20 that didn't want to MU. The F9 never died as I remember; it usually led the coal runs. Those F units are the best power KJ has (and I've seen it all). I could go on and on about how great the 1750 and 1752 are.
JT, I think I'm in that photo; nice shot.
Apparently I work on GEs now...