A trio of SD70ACes bring up the tail end of this eastbound BNSF (loaded) unit oil train. I have had people ask why there isn't a buffer car between the end DPUs on the train (like on the head end). The reason is because the buffer car is primarily used to protect the crew. With no crew on the DPUs, a buffer car is not required.
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After checking for a potential hotbox on the train, the conductor is back on board the head end. With the Zephyr a couple blocks ahead, the train has received a signal to continue west.
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A single SD70ACe brings up the tail end of a unit oil train rolling east by the signal at the west end of Rollins. Trees along Tolland Road create a nice fall tunnel here at the start of October.
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The fall scene at West Rollins is extremely colorful as a black snake (unit oil train) led by a pair of UP ES44ACs and a covered hopper buffer car make their way east at Rollins. Sitting in the siding at Rollins is the westbound Zephyr, which just came to a stop about two minutes earlier. The Zephyr did beat the oil train, but overall, it is a pretty good meet.
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UP 8403, an SD70ACe, is bringing up the rear of this (temporarily broken) coal load at Rollins. When the crew is ready to put the train back together, the engineer will get in this DPU and bring the 20 cars of the train up to the front 3/4 of the train, already between switches on the main.
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20 cars and a DPU hang west of the west switch of Rollins. The bottom of one of these bathtub gondolas broken open and spilled a bunch of coal. In fact, you can see some of the coal along the ballast near the right of the shot. That happened at 5:30am! About 11 hours later, a crew is still working to get the train back together.
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This coal load in broken in two at the west end of Rollins. A car developed a problem and needed to be set out in the house track. The defective car was located at this spot in the train. The train was broken in two so the head end power could retrieve the bad car.
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The crew on the train to the right (on the siding) has died and is waiting for a relief crew out of Denver. The train to the left (on the main) has a fresh crew and is passing the train in the siding. The train will end up meeting again at some point though, as both are headed for the West Elk mine on the North Fork Branch in western Colorado.
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A crew members from the MNYRO stands by on the front porch of UP 6302 as a "Snow Bus" passes by on the siding. The Snow Bus is used to transport crews back and forth to trains that cannot be reached by road (due to adverse weather).
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