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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Sandpatch" data-source="post: 228299" data-attributes="member: 10543">In most cases, the steam locomotive is the real deal -- pulling hard and working all the way.  The diesels you sometimes see trailing are often there as insurance, so that the train can be moved quickly to a siding if the steam locomotive were to suffer a failure.  In some cases the diesel is there to give a gentle assist if the steam locomotive is small and the train is heavy.After making an exit from operating steam over a decade ago, Norfolk Southern will again run trips when it completes a renovation of its lovely No. 611, a large 4-8-4 built for the Norfolk & Western in 1950.</blockquote>