Union Pacific SD70M No. 4014 leads Big Boy 4-8-8-4 No. 4014 and SD70M No. 4884 at Laramie, Wyo., in May 2014 on the ferry move of the steam locomotive from California to Wyoming.
Trains: Jim Wrinn
OMAHA, Neb. – If you got photos of Union Pacific SD70M No. 4014 before it became famous as the pilot engine that ferried Big Boy 4-8-8-4 No. 4014 in May 2014 from California to its place of restoration at the steam shop in Cheyenne, Wyo., consider yourself lucky. It won’t be No. 4014 much longer.
The now 18-year-old unit is set for repainting as UP spruces up its roster. It was part of the 1,000-unit order for new power that UP placed in 2000 for SD70Ms Nos. 4000-4999. UP repaints its power at the former Missouri Pacific diesel shop in North Little Rock, Ark.
No. 4014 may take the place of another unit in the order, No. 4479, which has been or is about to be retired, Trains News Wire has learned.
Renumbering the diesel unit clears the railroad to have only one No. 4014, the steam locomotive, which is under restoration and set for debut in May 2019 in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the transcontinental railroad.
I was there, in Pomona, the night that the 4014 was put on the tracks, to take it back for restoration. In Talking To Ed Deakins, he was very unhappy that he couldn’t get the SDD- 70 for that night, because it wasn’t running. He also said that he wasn’t going to move the 4014 across the country without the diesel. It was funny when I saw the reaction of people the next morning, when they found out about the two diesel’s numbers and significance.
With the UP SD-70ms now approaching 18+ years old, are some of them candidates for either retirement and/or return to lessor? (I recall reading the entire 1,000 unit UP SD-70m fleet was “leased”, not purchased outright back in the late 1990s/early 2000s when they were delivered).
It sounds like UP #4014 is being renumbered into a # of a unit that was wrecked in Texas.
LEO AMES sd70m 4479 was retired in April 2009 following a wreck at Oakwood,Texas, along with sd70m 3833 and C41-8W 9556, being the lowest roster spot availlable in the Ph1 sd70m numbers series (utahrails.net).
Ed, 5 digits weren’t an option not because of an AAR mandate, but because of computer system limitations. Several computer systems like UMLER allow no more than 4 digits to be entered for a locomotive’s number. That was why UPY was born after Union Pacific decided against resurrecting a predecessor’s reporting marks like SP and after a lot of negotiation with the National Motor Freight Traffic Association to grant them the new reporting mark.
Very cool!
What’s wrong with the 4479? Wreck damaged?
I heard talk about this story (UP SD70M #4014 being renumbered) from a friend who was part of the Railgiants Train Museum in Fairplex back in 2014 when the Big Boy was being removed at that time. He was informed by UP that SD70M #4014 planned to be renumbered once the Big Boy was rebuilt; but they were unclear at the time what UP Diesel #4014s new number would be.
Locomotives can have only 4 digits–the UP asked that question several years ago and was told “no” by some agency that I don’t remember—AAR?. That is why UP yard engines are “UPY”.
Retired Class 1
Can’t they just add an extra number to 4014 until 4014 is retired? 40144 or 44014?