Diesel Fleet Timeline

[Philcal]

Locomotives are often financed in a manner similar to purchasing an automobile. As noted, this is usually in the form of an equipment trust. The financing of a locomotive generally runs to about 15 years,at which time the unit is fully amortized. That's a fancy way of saying it's paid for. The unit can, and often does still earn money for the railroad, and that's why they're still quite a few SD 40-2s, GP 40s etc still in revenue service for Class I roads. Units are often rebuilt, and this process can add an additional 10-15 years of life for them. Early EMD Geeps are good examples of this practice, with many lasting into the 1980's in service for their original purchasers.

[twcenterprises]

I'm not so sure about a 15 year life span. 30+ would seem more correct. NS is still running SD40's, which were built in the late 60's, early 70's and SD40-2's, built after 1972. Just because a unit is over 25 years old doesn't mean it's scrap. As of 1995, NS still had a few SW1's (built in 1947, 1950) active. Assuming they are still going, that would be nearly 60 years of service. A friend of mine who works for NS said something about "equipment trusts" which, if I understand correctly, is essentially a "loan" for a RR to buy rolling stock, over a period of 10-30 years. Southern Ry. had a few SD40-2's (built in 1975) that must have been "lemons", because after the NS merger, they sat in storage until Jan. 1991 when they were "retired". I'm told they had to sit in storage until the trust expired (probably Dec. 1990), and as soon as it did, they were gone. If that's the case, then they would have had a 15 year trust on them. Perhaps this is what ndbprr is talking about. On a 15 year note, you would still be taking tax write-offs (1 way or another).

Brad

[sfrailfan]

you probably saw this but in case you didn't:

http://www.trainpix.com/bnsf/

Dan

[tigerstripe]

I don't know about UP, but as for BN a general rule is everything that was
inheirited from the merger except for the F's and units that were wrecked
stayed on until 1980. After that the Alcos were the first to go followed by the older GEs. BN was short of power for a long time and when they bought
new locomotives (SD40-2 and C30-7)most of them went for Powder River coal service so very few units were ever retired during that period.

How about rephrasing the question? What years are you interested in,
from that you can tell what type of power you need.

Check for build dates of the rosters you have. and go from there.

[darday]

QUOTE: Originally posted by cspmo

QUOTE: Most railroads have traditionally used 15 year depreciation. That means they must dispose of an engine after 15 years as there is no more book value.

CNW got thier SD 40-2 in 1974,& was still on their roster in 1995 that's 21 years
of services.

I don't know anything in the accounting regulations or tax laws that REQUIRES disposal of a depreciated item. If an item is fully depreciated, it just means that it is carried on the balance sheet with a zero dollar value, and there is no longer any depreciation tax write-off that can be claimed. If it is still cost-effective to maintain and operate a depreciated locomotive, it can and should be maintained and operated. Sometimes the value of the depreciation tax write-off makes replacing functional but fully depreciated equipment the better economic choice, but that would depend on the railroad's individual circumstances at the time. If someone knows otherwise, I would like to hear.

--Dave

[cspmo]

QUOTE: Most railroads have traditionally used 15 year depreciation. That means they must dispose of an engine after 15 years as there is no more book value.

CNW got thier SD 40-2 in 1974,& was still on their roster in 1995 that's 21 years
of services.

[rlhelton]

Thanks for the suggestions. The Union Pacific information that Don Strack has pulled together and put out in an easy to read format was great. I wish some one had done the same for Burlington Northern. Not only with their new stuff but with all the equipment they took in from other lines when they merged into Burlington Northern.

[ndbprr]

Most railroads have traditionally used 15 year depreciation. That means they must dispose of an engine after 15 years as there is no more book value. It also means if it is a lemon it sits somewhere on railroad property for the remaining time until fully depreciated. The bottom line is if you can find out when an engine was new to a railroad you can pretty much bet that by adding 15 years to the date is about when it would be traded or scrapped. I expect scrapping will happen to all these high horsepower units the class ones are buying as shortlines will have no interest when they are depreciated. There is one excpetion to this however. Sometimes the railroads decide to completely rebuild a class of engines that is partiucularly useful. Classes like GP-7,9, 38 and 15 are always in demand. Chances are after rebuilding it would emerge with an entirely different number to ease bookkeeping entries.

[Anonymous]

Regarding the UP material one of the better resources for you would be Don Strack at utahrails.net, if you haven't already seen his website. His information is terrific.

[rlhelton]

I found a GN Diesel Fleet Timeline that shows what TYPE, MAKER, and YEARS of OPERATION for all their diesel locomotives. I am also trying to find the same type of information for the Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Railroads. I have found all sorts of rosters for both UP and BN but nothing as
nice as telling me when they first got a certain type of locomotive and when they quit using that type. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks [:)]