Railroad Trains for the Soul - MARC Trains
Travel back to 1994 in the state of Maryland where its commuter rail system operates. The Maryland Area Rail Commuter (MARC) initially acquired a fleet of pre-owned Electro-Motive F units, which were previously painted in the Maryland Department of Transportation scheme. It also had some former Chicago, Burlington & Quincy six-axle E units painted in the green and white Burlington Northern scheme but patched with MARC lettering. The agency's more modern locomotives were the Morrison-Knudsen rebuilds of EMD GP40 diesels: GP39H-2 and GP40WH-2. While intended for passenger duty, both models were built as utilitarian road switchers. The GP40WH-2 was rebuilt with a unique F45-style wide nose.
This video was filmed more than a decade before the emergence of the more streamlined MPXpress MP36PH-3C locomotives built by Motive Power Industries to replace the GP40 rebuilds. Prior to the introduction of the Siemens SC-44 Charger, virtually all MARC diesel locomotives (including the MP36) have been powered by EMD's two-stroke engines. While the Tier 4-compliant Chargers are today the cleanest and most technologically advanced units in the system, it's good to look back at the days when the EMD E and F units had their final careers pulling and pushing MARC trains regularly.
Here's a quick sample of a cab ride onboard a MARC commuter train from 1994. The cab is probably inside a cab coach that remotely controls the locomotive pushing the whole train.