| BN GP50 3159 at Clyde, Illinois on February 19, 1987, photo by Chuck Zeiler. This locomotive was built in November 1985 (c/n 847073-2), the second of five built with the extended crew cab, delivered as #'s 3158-3162. The tank car splicing the pairs of locomotives was known as a fuel tender. As I understand the concept, the idea was to save money by purchasing the fuel at the cheapest location, and avoiding more expensive re-fueling at outlying locations. The fuel tender was connected to the modified locomotives, saving money by avoiding re-fueling enroute. I'm not certain how this experiment played out in the long run. |