Western Railroad Discussion > Utah coal to Mexico

The January 2008 Trains has a short blurb about coal moving from Utah to Chihuahua, Mexico via Utah Railway and BNSF (at least for the US part of the haul). Does anyone know whose coal it is (the blurb mentioned the Wild Cat loadout) and to whom it's going?

Thanks in advance.

I don't know the particulars, but we run a CGJCEFS with about76 cars to ElPaso, I think the wheel said Coking coal. The empty is showing Denver the 19th in the evening.

Don't know much about where it is loaded or unloaded but
here is the BNSF C GJCEFS0 10 at Fountain,Co on Dec 6th 2007.
This is the 10th train from them this year.
Nathan Z.

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Think I read in an earlier thread the coal goes to a cement plant. There are a couple between CD. Juarez and Chihuahua on the FXE if I recall.

Mexrail

Rio Grande Cement
Loads at Wildcat Loadout, just SW of Helper Utah on the Utah Railway. It is a Utah Railway train from Grand Junciton to the mine and back.

KK

KoloradoKid Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Rio Grande Cement
> Loads at Wildcat Loadout, just SW of Helper Utah
> on the Utah Railway. It is a Utah Railway train
> from Grand Junciton to the mine and back.
>
> KK

And a prime candidate for routing via Tennessee Pass if there was any rationale to the US railroad system. But there hasn't been for 177 years so why start now??<GBG>

lowwater

On this coal train any time frame when it runs I feel a road trip to Helper coming would like to see this train. Thanks for any help.
Ryan Ballard

How often do they run this coal train?

John Crisanti
Longmont, CO

I think it runs once a month.
Nathan Z.

There is an empty E EFSGJC0 10A scheduled on 12/18 to depart El Paso at 1040, ABQ at 2045 and Raton at 0340 on the 19th. As of now it is on a "OPERATION DECISION" meaning that this schedule can fall down quite a bit. Who knows, maybe a nice daylight trip by the "blades".

Just a note of interest as this northbound empty train "usually" goes via Raton. It is always on the lineup for days until it actually materializes.
JB

They try, and usually are somewhat successful, to load on Fridays and head East on Saturday morning. Last trip ended up heading East on Wednesday. The empty was late so they loaded sometime on Tuesday. Trips can be as close as 2 weeks apart to as long as months. Last year they ran almost a month apart, consistantly. This year they have run more frequently. dda40x6900 could be a great help in forcasting when they show up on the schedule! I too would love to catch the empty on Raton Pass also.

For lowwater who said: "And a prime candidate for routing via Tennessee Pass if there was any rationale to the US railroad system. But there hasn't been for 177 years so why start now??<GBG>"

One of the better candidates IMHO! But yes, why break a 177 tradition?

KK