Weekend Update 3/13/22

[MK]

That was the height of Covid and pretty much everybody stayed home.

[nkalanaga]

I-90 in western SD isn't the busiest highway, but it does see a fair amount of truck traffic.  Also, besides Covid, much of the vehicle traffic is tourism, and December isn't the height of the tourist season.

Other factors are that Wall is the western entrance to Badlands National Park, so a lot of tourists go through the park, rather than taking the Interstate east of Wall.  The east entrance connects to I-90 further to the east.  And, that early in the morning, a lot of the tourists, even in summer, wouldn't be at Wall.  They have few motel rooms, and it's a long ways to the towns that do.  By the time they eat breakfast, and drive an hour or more, they won't be there until later in the morning.

[peteski]

LOL!  Living in the Northeast USA, even in the thick of a snow storm, or middle of the night, you would pretty much be guaranteed to see at least one car on the local parts of I-90, I-93, I-95, I-495, or other intestate in the area.  And around 8-9am in the mornings, they are packed with traffic.  I'm just not used to see highways deserted like that, especially during what would be considered a morning rush hour.

[eja]

  I'm just not used to see highways deserted like that, especially during what would be considered a morning rush hour.

It was there, you just missed it when you blinked !

[oakcreekco]

Got my pair of no number SP -9 bodies back together and on freshly serviced chassis. Running very well and I'm pleased.

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[ncbqguy]

@R L Smith,

If it does start to bother you, fab up a shorter drawbar out of styrene, and you can get the MTL FTs closer.  If it helps, the prototype was likely drawbarred between the A-unit and the B-unit anyway.

DFF

The tip-off is that units with couplers have sill steps and grab irons on the ends of units so equipped.  Drawbars were a way of making boosters integral to one locomotive until the Brotherhoods got on board with the diesel era.
Charlie Vlk

[davefoxx]

The tip-off is that units with couplers have sill steps and grab irons on the ends of units so equipped.  Drawbars were a way of making boosters integral to one locomotive until the Brotherhoods got on board with the diesel era.
Charlie Vlk

This is true.  One of my favorite CSXT predecessors was the Atlantic Coast Line, and they may have been one of the first roads to figure out how to fit couplers between the A and B units on the FT model.

DFF

[Missaberoad]

This is true.  One of my favorite CSXT predecessors was the Atlantic Coast Line, and they may have been one of the first roads to figure out how to fit couplers between the A and B units on the FT model.

DFF

One of the only roads to figure that out! Most were retired as pairs. The fact that they were oddballs mechanically and retired early for the most part probably didn't help.