What’s it like when 600-ton ‘Big Boy’ locomotive comes to town?

Above: Previous coverage of ‘Big Boy’ locomotive’s first coast-to-coast tour

(NEXSTAR) – There will be countless celebrations this year in honor of America’s semiquincentennial (aka, its 250th anniversary), but none may be as massive as a 1.2 million-pound locomotive rolling into your town. 

Big Boy No. 4014, one of just a handful of remaining engines that were built to haul heavy equipment during World War II, will soon embark on its first-ever coast-to-coast tour, Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena announced earlier this month. At the time, he said the tour schedule would be available “soon,” a point he reiterated Thursday while speaking with the Midwest Association of Rail Shippers.

There, while discussing the trip, Vena told the crowd, “We’ll start at the end of March,” Trains.com reported. Exact dates and locations weren’t immediately available.

The 133-foot-long locomotive, the only Big Boy to still travel the tracks, returned to service in 2019 and has made multiple well-attended tours, including its sweeping “Heartland of America Tour” in 2024 and a limited tour in 2025.

This year’s tour could bring No. 4014 to nearly every state. 

Union Pacific’s network currently covers 23 states, primarily in the western half of the nation: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

The company is working to merge with Norfolk Southern, which could create “The Great Connection” and expand Union Pacific’s (and Big Boy’s) range into 19 additional states and the District of Columbia: Alabama, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. (Norfolk Southern’s network also stretches into Illinois, Louisiana, and Missouri.)

Vena told the crowd on Thursday that they’re “having a few problems with our partner in the East to exactly finalize” the coast-to-coast trip, before reportedly suggesting “they better freakin’ hurry up,” Trains.com reported.

If Big Boy No. 4014, which is nearly twice as long as the diesel locomotives that make up Union Pacific’s fleet today, does make it out East, it’ll be the first time the locomotive has been in the region since it rolled out of the Schenectady, New York, plant that created it in 1941, Trains.com reported.

Slideshow: Big Boy No. 4014

While we don’t know much more about the 2026 tour, we have some insight into what the experience may be like. 

“I’ve often compared the Big Boy to the Elvis Presley of locomotives; it’s definitely Union Pacific’s ‘rock star’ as it attracts attention wherever it goes,” Mike Jaixen, the senior manager of communications for Union Pacific, told Nexstar via email.

During some of its previous tour stops, Big Boy would park at a station for several days, while in others, it would make quick “whistle stops.” Jaixen explained that the length of a stop “will vary based on operational needs.”

“Our crew will typically stop every couple of hours to service the locomotive; these stops typically last about a half hour,” he said. “It’s a good opportunity for people to take photos and see the work required to maintain the world’s largest operating steam locomotive.”

Greeley, Colorado, experienced shorter visits from the Big Boy last year, Nexstar’s KDVR reported. The locomotive was available to the public for about 30 minutes after arriving in town, was unavailable the next day, and then reopened to the public for about 20 minutes before departing on the third day. It made similar 20 to 30 minute stops in the state on its 2024 tour.

Evening stops last longer as Big Boy’s crew performs maintenance, refuels the locomotive, and fills the water tenders, Jaixen explained. In larger cities, the Big Boy is available for greater public access, with guests able to not only look at the 1.2 million-pound behemoth but also “learn about the history of the railroad and the importance of rail transportation to our nation’s economy. “

Big Boy No. 4014 spent several days in Roseville, California, on its 2024 tour. Nexstar’s KTXL reported at the time that the city held several events to honor the locomotive’s visit, including Old West performances. Officials later said that Big Boy brought tens of thousands of visitors to the town and helped to generate an estimated $2.97 million for local businesses. 

Thousands gathered in Rochelle, Illinois, about 80 miles west of Chicago, to welcome Big Boy to town in 2024. Some told Nexstar’s WTVO that they traveled from several hours away just to catch a glimpse of the massive engine. While there, the Big Boy was on public display, for free, for about six hours before departing for multiple “whistle stops” in Illinois.

It’s too soon to say where Big Boy No. 4014 will make stops on its 2026 tour. Jaixen told Nexstar the tour is still being planned out, and members of its Steam Club will be notified about additional information.

Should you get to see Big Boy No. 4014 in person, Union Pacific asks that you remain at least 25 feet away from the railroad tracks as it passes through. While some have placed coins on the tracks to create their own elongated souvenir from a Big Boy sighting, Jaixen noted it is unsafe to trespass on railroad property to place an object on the track. Should it fall off, you may become distracted while searching for it and not notice an incoming train.

In the meantime, the Big Boy locomotive remains parked in Cheyenne, Wyoming, its online tracker shows. 

If you won’t get the chance to see No. 4014 during its coast-to-coast tour this year, you can find its seven brothers on public display in St. Louis; Dallas, Omaha, Nebraska; Denver; Scranton, Pennsylvania; and Cheyenne. Of the 25 Big Boy locomotives that were built, only these eight remain.