Western Railroad Discussion > The Perm's Heavy Trains

Today's LRB32 (Perm Local) put on quite a show. It was classic. The 4 geeps were smoking and working hard. That was caused by the crew pulling a heavy 15 car loaded train up the steep hill above Silicon Valley. Once up the hill, they have successfully reached Lehigh's Permanente Cement Plant on Union Pacific's Vasona Industrial Lead. Haha hopefully somebody will trim the trees blocking the track curve. In 2011 its a surprise to get 4 geeps on the Perm. Just like SP days, except with yellow power. For those interested, the Perm has ran with both 4 and 6 axle power recently. Not sure why today's crew chose to grab these small geeps instead of 2 GEVOs in Milpitas.

What material is in these loads? Has the cement plant switched back to using coal again?? Sure looks like it...

Maxwell



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/24/11 14:55 by Maxwell.

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In Monta Vista, CA, I got the out-bound train crawling by with 18 empties on its way back to Milpitas.

Maxwell

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Petroleum coke, which I think they are using instead of coal. Interestingly, these loads came from Wyoming.

Maxwell Wrote:
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> What material is in these loads? Has the cement
> plant switched back to using coal again?? Sure
> looks like it...
>
> Maxwell

My grandparents lived in Monta Vista right below "the plant" as we always called it. The hill used to be called
Hoo Hoo Hill and there was an old Hoo Hoo inn tavern near the top of Stevens Creek Road by the tracks where it crossed what is now Foothill Blvd.
C.

Carol Voss
Bakersfield, CA

Does the crew 'choose' their power or is it assigned by the dispatcher?

1. 15 cars at 150 tons a car (max) is 2250 tons. 4 GP-40's is 12,000 hp. or 5 hp/ton.

2 gp-40's could handle this easily, unless the units have no sand, or something.

AFAIK, the SP ran this job with 3 GP9's or SD-9's, and a lot more tonnage.
The UP seems to overpower locals along the coast a lot.

Max, great catch! Nice to see The Perm making more runs to the cement plant lately.

Anyone know if a set "schedule" exists for the Perm to make its run to the plant? I recollect that some time ago Mondays, Wednesdays or Fridays were days that a trip up the hill would be made but not necessarily all three days.

If you had four GP units: 15, 20, 38, maybe one 40, you would be lucky if two worked OK, one so-so, and one, at least dying. Not to mention, you have to come down that extreme hill with probably no working dynamic brakes and maybe thirty loads of cement. It required thought! I would sometimes dread catching that job. Using those newer mainline engines would make it easier.

Well, units not working properly is CERTAINLY the other possibility. Units
that will only load in 1 direction, or electrical systems that cut in and cut out,
and no D/B's used to be popular ailments. But with all the units that have been "stored serviceable",
I thought maybe the units that were still in service would be a bit better. I also would assume that if the crew wanted 3 units for the train, and there were 2 sets of 2 units in the yard, they would take all 4 rather than playing musical units in the yard.