We Go ENSCO
This past fall, Northern Plains Rail Services was pleased to be selected as the official railroad operator for the Transportation Technology Center (TTC), a specialized rail testing facility located near Pueblo, CO.
The TTC – jointly owned by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and the U.S. Department of Transportation – is now operated by ENSCO, Inc., a leader in technological development that operates in the aerospace, national security, surface transportation and cybersecurity sectors. “As the new operator of the TTC, ENSCO was seeking a qualified railroad operating partner,” remarked Gregg F. Haug, Northern Plains Chairman, “and we were honored to be awarded a contract to provide these services, where NPR employees will work on an integrated basis with ENSCO to operate rail switching, operations, and testing at the TTC.”
The classic lines of an EMD F7A locomotive are shown on a rainy day at Fordville, ND, on June 27, 1969. This locomotive was built in LaGrange, IL, in 1950, and originally served on the Wisconsin Central before being acquired by the SOO in 1961. Photo by Charles W. Bohi.
At its celebratory event held in October, ENSCO noted that its TTC testing operations are “supported by leading surface transportation research, training, technology, and facilities management and operations organizations, including Ambipar Response, Atkins Global, Sharma and Associates, GTI Energy, EMCOR Government Services, the University of South Florida Center for Urban Transportation Research (CUTR), and Northern Plains Railroad. Research at the site is supported by the Center for Surface Transportation Testing and Academic Research (C-STTAR), a consortium of eight universities and academic research centers led by CUTR with specialties across all modes of surface transportation.”
TTC features over 50 miles of railroad used for testing high-tonnage and high-speed operations, and transit vehicles. Train Control and specific equipment testing is also conducted on site. “Under the FRA’s leadership and ENSCO’s management, the new era of the TTC will expand from railroads to include pipelines, trucking and heavy vehicles, bus and transit vehicles, and Non-Traditional and Emerging Transportation Technologies (NETT),” remarked ENSCO in a recent release. “The Center’s expanding training capabilities can accommodate HazMat and Emergency Response training, as well as a series of cybersecurity training programs currently in operations.”
Also built in 1950, Great Northern GP7 602 is on a northbound wayfreight switching the traditional Peavy elevators at Lawton, ND, on June 17, 1970. Lawton was located on the old GN Lakota to Calvin branch, part of which is now operated by Northern Plains. Photo by Charles W. Bohi.
In addition to day-to-day rail operations, NPRS has engaged with ENSCO on the upgrading of specific locomotives, utilizing our Lansford Locomotive Service center and our mechanical consulting expertise.
NPRS operations at the TTC are the responsibility of Daniel K. Watson, Director Industry Rail Operations, and our local Superintendent Casey Mraovich. We welcome Casey and the entire Pueblo-based group of Railroaders to the Northern Plains family.
