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Enid, where H-MEMBAR can it pick it up. The train also works Belen and Gal- lup, N.M., as well as Winslow, Ariz.
Locomotive News
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In March, BNSF received from General Electric new ES44C4s 7921, 7927–7930, 7991–7999, and 8318–8338. All the new ES44C4s on BNSF’s roster numbered 7990–7999, as well as the new 8300s, are Tier 4 “credit user” locomotives. In brief, a credit user locomotive in this case is a Tier 3 locomotive under the hood, but built after January 1, 2015, when Tier 4 emissions requirements went into effect. Manufacturer General Electric was able to accumulate emissions credits through the energy-saving features in the design of its Tier 3 locomotives, and these cred- its are then transferred to the “credit user” locomotives to offset the differing emission requirements of Tier 3 and Tier 4. New Tier 4 locomotives from General Electric are expected later in 2015 and are slated to occupy the 3800 and 3900 series on the roster.
Derailments
During the late morning of March 22, Train C-BTMAMH0-26 (Coal Loads, Black Thunder Mine, Wyo.–Southwest Public Service, Amarillo, Texas) derailed 31 cars about halfway back in its train while passing Hudson, Colo., on the Brush Subdivision and moving at just under 40 m.p.h. The west switch at Hud- son was destroyed, as was the eastbound absolute signal in this control point. The derailment was attributed to a broken wheel on the 60th car of the 120-car train, and there were no injuries. Some 46 track panels were required to repair the mainline, a rather difficult task giv- en the roadbed in this area is elevated, and the railroad was not fully restored to service until almost 36 hours later. Loaded coal trains C-BTMMLT0-24, C-NAMMLT0-28, and C-NAMMLT0-29, all en route to Southwest Public Service at Mill, Texas, detoured via Alliance, Neb., to Lincoln, and south to Kansas City, Kan., where they rode the Transcon to Amarillo and west to Texico, N.M., to gain the normal route over the Slaton Subdivision. Train C-BTMAMH8-27 for Amarillo also rerouted in this same fash- ion, although only as far as Amarillo. Two loaded coal trains were routed over Union Pacific rails between Northport, Neb., and Kansas City, Kan., one for Mill, Texas, and one for Smithers Lake, Texas. Several empty coal trains were routed over the Front Range Subdivision
from Denver to Cheyenne and others routed east over the Santa Fe from Am- arillo to Kansas City and to Lincoln and Alliance. The pair of Z-trains between Chicago and Denver that ply this route were held back until the track could be restored on March 23. During the evening hours of March
21, Train H-HOUGAL1-21 (High Pri- ority Manifest, Houston, Texas–Gales- burg, Ill.) derailed 13 cars near the head end of the 78-car train as it was passing Valley Mills, Texas, on the Fort Worth Subdivision. The derailment was trig- gered by an improperly secured pipe on the train’s third car, which broke loose and hit one end of the bulkhead and derailed that car and the 12 cars that followed. Of the 13 cars that derailed, five were tank cars carrying hazardous material and one of those was leaking product. As a result, several local resi- dences were evacuated. Due to the Valley Mills derailment,
several trains were detoured, including a pair of V-SNTKCK (Autos, San Antonio, Texas–Argentine Yard, Kansas City, Kan.) trains through Temple, Lubbock, and Amarillo, Texas, as well as Train X-EAPSNA9-28 (Empty Unit Grain, Eagle Pass, Texas–Salina, Kansas) and M-TPLKCK4-27 (Manifest, Temple, Texas–Argentine Yard). Empty unit coal Train E-DOLRWM detoured as well, go- ing north out of Wellington to Newton, Kan., and Superior, Neb., to access Alli- ance. This train, however, derailed north of Wichita, Kan., on April 3 after wind gusts of up to 82 m.p.h. caused nine emp- ty coal hoppers in the train to blow over as the train was stopped between Valley Center and Sedgwick, Kan.
CANADIAN NATIONAL SAYRE KOS
ES44AC Update
On March 22, General Electric complet- ed delivery of ES44ACs 2925–2950, the batch of Tier 4 credit units. The credit units are so designated because they are a Tier 3 locomotive under the hood, but built after January 1, 2015, when Tier 4 emissions requirements went into effect. The manufacturer of the locomotives generated and saved emissions credits through energy-saving features in the design of previous models of Tier-com- pliant locomotives and these credits are then transferred to the credit units to offset the differing emission require- ments of Tier 3 and Tier 4. As has been previously reported in
this column, ten of these credit units were misnumbered and delivered as
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