The 611 locomotive is officially chugging along the train tracks ahead of its fall excursions beginning next week.
The locomotive at the Virginia Museum of Transportation is prepared to make trips to Goshen, Virginia, starting Sept. 26 for passengers looking to experience the scenic 80-mile route. The 611 crew met at 6 a.m. Thursday to make preparations, and roughly three and a half hours later, the locomotive was on its way north.
Zac McGinnis, team operations manager for the Virginia Museum of Transportation, said, “It’s a worldwide known locomotive. One of the most famous locomotives in the world, and we’re very proud and very lucky to be a part of it and have it here in Roanoke and show what the Roanoke craftsmanship was from the NW railway and keep spreading it around the world to get more people to come see it.”
Staff from the Roanoke chapter of the National Railway Historical Society recently completed the tool car, which follows the 611 carrying all the supplies needed during an excursion.