Why do freight trains have multiple engines at the front and rear?

Question

I always wondered what the extra locomotives are for on modern freight trains, are they for extra power?

In: Engineering

Answer 1

They always try to give technical reasons like “power” and “load.” The real truth is that it is a result of the Engineers Employment Guarantee (EEG) of 1948 which requires multiple engines and therefore multiple engineers on every train that travels in excess of 50 miles. It was negotiated by the Train Workers Union (TWU). It’s twu, it’s twu!