Paul, You make a valid point. When U.P. assumed ownership of the S.P. property, they took on a railroad that had seen decades of deferred maintenance. It only seems fair that the rotaries fell into that category. Since their use is so infrequent , the lapse in time leading to this rebuild makes perfect sense.

There are significant differences in the snow in Wyoming and Nebraska when compared to the wet,deep,intractable snow on the west face of the Sierra Nevada. The snow fighting tactics on the hill are laid out in a way that keeps the railroad open while the snow falls at a rate not seen elsewhere. UP had not been exposed to a real sierra snow storm since the takeover. Last years storm was a serious wake up call. Lessons have been learned and acted upon . I look forward to see how the rebuild turns out. i watched the rebuild of the spreaders and was impressed with the up-grade. Will the plows come back in Armor yellow, Silver or the traditional black?