Three Kinds of Pumpkin -- BNSF Freight Locomotives in Bealville, California
by Darin Volpe
Title
Three Kinds of Pumpkin -- BNSF Freight Locomotives in Bealville, California
Artist
Darin Volpe
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
When Burlington Northern and Santa Fe merged in 1995 a new corporate image was required. The result was an orange and green (later black) color scheme that became known as the "Pumpkin" to trainspotters. The trailing locomotive seen here is the original Heritage 1 design, the lead engine is the second variant, and in the middle is the latest Heritage 3 style.
5732 on the point of this train is painted in the second of the three major BNSF styles (known as Heritage 2) and is one of 30 pre-production General Electric ES44AC units that were built for the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad in 2003. It is followed by an EMD SD70ACe painted in the newest (or Heritage 3) style, and a GE C44-9W in the original Heritage 1 design brings up the rear.
GE is the largest producer of diesel locomotives. After decades in second place, it finally battled rival EMD for the #1 spot in the early 1980's and cemented that position in 1989. Locomotives like the C44-9W, which was introduced in 1993, helped propel GE to eventually holding a 70% market share, and the ES44AC helps keep GE in first place.
Uploaded
October 25th, 2020
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