Caption: One of the most interesting things left to get photos of nowadays on CN - the GP9RM's have been a staple of the railfanning scene for over 40 years. With the retirement over the past few years of all mainline "sergeant stripes" units, these are some of the most notable locomotives with the scheme remaining intact. CN is also the last class one railway in North America to roster GP9's of any kind, the oldest still currently rostered just having turned 70 years old last year (CN 4125).
Seen here at Manning Drive south of London, CN 4141 is a recent transfer unit from the Montreal power pool. It has proven to be a reliable puller, and the London crews have taken a liking to it. Trailing behind, 4790 has been a staple of the Southern Ontario power pool for years, and 4936 is one of the more recent additions. In the photo, L584 is heading south to St. Thomas where they will interchange cars with OSR and GIO, along with working the Formet plant. I used to watch 584 at this spot when I was much, much younger, and the power has stayed mostly the same. This train is also the last amount of business CN has in the city of St. Thomas, no longer running any of their own trains on the Cayuga/Paynes Subdivisions, and the CASO Subdivision running west out of St. Thomas being closed and abandoned for over 20 years.
Hopefully the GP9RM's last a little bit longer. People seem to have been saying they're on the brink of retirement for the past couple of years, but they just keep soldiering on.