How the mighty have fallen ... This trackage, threading between a stand of palm trees and a row of eucalyptus, is Union Pacific's San Pedro Subdivision. It was, before the UP acquired the Southern Pacific, the UP's mainline to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach (originally constructed by UP predecessor Los Angeles Terminal Railway). These days, it sees mainly locals and trains such as this - the IWALBR 02, which is bringing empty well cars from Walker (a siding on the border of the cities of Commerce and Bell) to Long Beach's ICTF intermodal yard. UP SD59M-2 9908, which UP calls SD59MX, was formerly a mainline engine - SD60M 6341 - now relegated to local service. Rebuilt by original builder EMD, these engines are equipped with an experimental exhaust aftertreatment, and are fueled only with ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel and are restricted to service in California only. (Long Beach, California – August 2, 2012)
