Western Railroad Discussion > Six digit switcher

North American railroads generally seem averse to adopting locomotive numbers greater than four digits. I know there are 5-digit numbers in use, but I hadn't seen a 6-digit number until this past Monday. Parked across the street from the Tulsa-Sapulpa Union shops in Sapulpa, OK sat SW1500 MJRX 100009, previously an Andersons Inc. asset. MJRX is Railway Service Contractors Inc. of Kansas City, a purveyor of locomotives and locomotive parts. Not sure what 100009 is doing in Oklahoma.

Bill Gillfillan
Tulsa, OK

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Looking over the roster of locomotives with AEX reporting marks on rrpicturearchives, it appears that The Andersons like to give their locomotives numbers with five or more digits.

GP40 1000002: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3620501
SD40 1000008: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3719909
C40-8M 100017: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3684768
SW1200 999993: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3410229
GP38-2 999999: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3698054

According to this, AEX 100009 is former Venture County Ry 1200 (hence the RailAmerica paint), ex-IC SW14 1412, built as IC SW9 9455.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/greenspunn/12823223813/

Thanks for the additional information, Evan. I wasn't totally convinced the 100009 was an SW1500...something just didn't look right. Now I recognize that IC cab!

Bill G.