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Caption: Easily one of the most somber photos I've taken, this one got to me a bit. CP 5583 came along with CP 6608 and 6612 (both ex SOO) to K&K Recycling a couple weeks prior on CN 546. Here, 5583 now sits gutted and alone on a cold quiet breezy afternoon. In less than a week, it will completely disappear into the pile behind where the scattered remains of 6608 and 6612 lay. Part of 24 unit order completed on 08/09/16, K&K was and still is taking in old CP EMD relics, particularly SD40-2's to be reduced to shards of metal.
CP 5583's story is an interesting one, in which it was built in 1972. It then wrecked in 1980, and was rebuilt five years later and continued strong until around 2013/14ish, making it one of the last 5500s on the active roster. Nonetheless, its fate became sealed when the oil boom came crashing down and E.H.H's cutthroat managing scared away a lot of customers. Frequent CP SD40-2 sightings as late as early 2014 became nonexistent by early 2016 except heading for scrap. Late 2016 saw a few SD40-2's return to service, however, this picture explains that their 50 year reign is pretty much over.
Like many scrap yards in Ontario, you won't be able to buy from them. I already tried, and couldn't even walk away with a numberboard. All your photogenic memories will have to be photos themselves unfortunately. Mind you, this location is not accessible by foot unless you want to get chased by the guard.
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Daniel EHH did not scare away customers. All railroads suffered through a downturn in business in the last year and change and it is not uncommon here for freight to go back and forth between cn and cp. …You cant invent freight, period. But you can grow some market share – domestic intermodal on CP grew 8 % last year as they have a more direct route than CN on some routes.
It is like sending your horse to the glue factory. A very sad day when she goes, the farm will miss Old Bessy dearly. But she just doesn’t pull like she used to.
I know I’ll get called out every time I blast E.H.H., but I stand by it. Surely all those complaints about CP refusing to pick up cars and consistently bad ordering them isn’t just hogwash. I’m not saying it’s 100% his fault of course though, as times are indeed changing and the market is even more jumbled. CP and CN reminds me of the UP/BNSF competition in the states. Even the hobos prefer UP because anything BNSF that isn’t intermodal seems to be always tied down.
@Snake? What routes do CP have more direct routes?
Sad, but on the plus side, that siding is getting some use. 5583 was one of a number of units that were rebuilt after wrecks.
It’s first brush with death:
http://www.mountainrailway.com/Roster%20Archive/CP%205500/CP%205583-4.jpg
Its always sad to see locomotives at the end of their lives. I am glad that the original SD40 is still around and that we have at least come to our senses an preserved some of these awesome engines. Seems that we have learned a thing or two after letting some classic locomotive disappear under the torch without preserving at least one of them.
So sad… At least oldies like 5833 are running
It’s not that they won’t sell. For me, you have to know someone in order to actually procure the part. I have a few things I ripped off H5 subway cars, because one of my friends I went to school with works for the TTC. Took me about 45 minutes to an hour just looking over one subway car. I picked it over for crap I wanted. Then I got to watch it being pushed very roughly onto the flatbed. This was also when the deal with Nigeria fell through and instead they ended up in the scrapyard. Was I escorted around? Yes. One of the workers was with me to remove the parts with a power drill. Did they bother me? No. This was also done in the shops at Davisville, not outside. It had already been stripped of it’s third rail power assemblies.
Yes I took the seat. The Recaro? Yes I took that. It’s sitting at my brothers place.
This is one of the most interesting images that I’ve ever seen on RPca. Nicely done, Daniel.