A southbound Burlington Northern coal train crawls up the top of the grade at Palmer Lake on Colorado’s Joint on February 24, 1988. Two EMD SD60 Oakways and two BN GE U30Cs lead the train, which is also being pushed by a pair of green SD40-2s on the rear. These helpers will cut off the train here and head back to Denver.
The EMD SD (special duty) series are a strong and reliable kind of locomotive which still serve America's rails today. They have proved themselves reliable by clocking in several million miles of freight service over several decades.