As my first post, I am impressed with the quantity and quality of responders.
All of my questions have been answered well beyond a query regarding something we all marvel at; steam locomotive railroading.
Yes the grades of the Kicking Horse Pass prior to the Spiral Tunnels, using switchbacks was more than 2%, but that era was before North American railroads embraced articulated motive power. However the comment about weight and curvature of the lines seems right.
CN in the time of articulateds, was a wholly owned Crown Corporation of the Federal government; this perhaps adding a reason to this railroad not putting forth any orders.
Yes CN does travel through much wilderness; in hindsight though, the people of Canada paying for 2 Pacific coast terminus', bodes well for the future of rail traffic to and from the Pacific Rim. The shortest route between China and the Gulf of Mexico or the Halifax container port on the Altantic, and vice versa would be from Prince Rupert; all on one railroad...CN.
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