Moving cargo to and fro may seem simple, but Tacoma Rail has more going on than just great goods. Check out these fun facts:

· A diesel locomotive’s engine does not power its wheels. It powers a huge generator/alternator that powers up to eight electric motors located on the “trucks” of the locomotive – the carriage that houses the wheels and axles.

· Tacoma Rail services and inspects Union Pacific’s locomotives in addition to its own, which saves Union Pacific time and money and provides and extra source of income for Tacoma Rail.

· The air brakes on all modern locomotives are essentially the same today as the originals designed by Westinghouse at the turn of the century. Before air brakes, a “brakeman” would climb the cars and walk along the tops, turning each railcar’s brake wheel by hand.

· Idle reduction technology used in 10 of Tacoma Rail’s 17 locomotives saves 130,000 gallons of diesel fuel per year and keeps 80 tons of hydrocarbons out of the air.

· Tacoma Rail’s 17 locomotives total more than 33,000 horsepower.

Tacoma Rail moves more than 20 million feet of rail equipment annually. That is roughly the equivalent distance from Tacoma to Chicago and back.