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Rolling Tonnage

A large block of fully loaded Ethanol tank cars rolls over the hogbacks of Northeast Iowa on the Canadian National RR tracks between Jesup and Raymond, Iowa

One of the things that draws me to rail photography is the sheer enormity of trains, and the power required to move them.

Each of these tank cars (go ahead and try to count them) potentially has 30,000+ gallons of E95-E100 ethanol and each car in a trains can have a gross rolling weight (if loaded) of 100+ tons. A 10,000 ton train, which is not unusual, has a rolling weight of 20 million pounds. Or the weight of 20+ fully fueled and loaded 747 passenger jets, each carrying 300+ passengers

That's why I like trains LOL

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Uploaded on March 2, 2016
Taken on January 10, 2016