KCS to get 30 new GE ES44AC locomotives
March 4, 2012 / Updated July 6, 2012
Class 1 Railroads
WASHINGTON – The Federal Railroad Administration announced recently a $54.6 million loan to Kansas City Southern Railway Co. (KCSR) for the purchase of 30 new General Electric ES44AC locomotives. The diesel-electric locomotives, to be built in Erie, PA, are more energy-efficient and produce significantly fewer carbon emissions than the locomotives they are replacing. Carbon emissions are something that does need to be taken into account with automobiles in any form, especially if they are used constantly and have an impact on the environment. Knowing how to mitigate carbon footprints with travel, whether that be by land or air, can be found on websites such as https://www.cooleffect.org/content/travel-offset, it can also show how much money is being saved which can help so many who may be struggling in these times.
The locomotives, which will be funded by the FRA’s Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing Program, will be deployed throughout KCSR’s system to accommodate increased demand for shipments of coal, chemicals, grain, sand, stone, gravel, plastics, metals, and automobiles.
RRIF provides direct loans for eligible borrowers to acquire, improve, or rehabilitate rail and rail-related intermodal equipment and facilities. There is currently up to an aggregate of $35 billion available in the RRIF program for these types of projects.
Growing up in Central Texas in the 1980s, David Heyde loved big machinery. Only natural for a boy surrounded by a mighty river complemented by steamboats, an active Army airfield and regional airport, and equipment that tended row upon row of corn, soybeans and other grains. What loomed largest, though, was the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad. Heyde’s MKT Central Texas Subdivision, a compact but bold HO-scale layout, captures on two levels around the walls the zest of the iconic railroad that ran from Kansas City and St. Louis to Galveston, TX, and the Gulf of Mexico. All while maximizing space in what once was a one-car garage.
This year’s National Narrow Gauge Convention is coming home, where it all began 45 years ago. The Mudhens will once again have a large presence at the convention Sept. 3-6 in St. Louis. Over the last four decades, their rise has been rather circuitous. While developing national appeal in narrow-gauge circles, these dedicated modelers from St. Louis to Arizona to Texas have persevered.
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