A loaded coal train begins to ease up as they make their way into West Burlington. The train will slow for the trip down the grade between West Burlington and Burlington before crossing the Mississippi River into Illinois. This is the BNSF coal route between Lincoln, NE, and Galesburg, IL, that transverses southern Iowa.
Back in 2006 the SD70MAC's had been the strong hold power for the BNSF coal trains for about the last 10 years. New delivers of these AC-GE's, starting around 2003, would eventually spell the end of the dominance.
