Rotary snowplow

Jull later sold his design rights to Leslie Brothers, who formed the Rotary Steam Shovel Manufacturing Company in Paterson, New Jersey.

The ability to operate slowly, as there is no requirement for train momentum to break up the snow, is often an advantage in mountainous regions, where a high speed derailment could be disastrous.

As a result, most railroads have eliminated their rotaries, preferring to use a variety of types of fixed-blade plows that have significantly lower maintenance costs, in conjunction with bulldozers, which can be used year-round on maintenance-of-way projects.

Since rotaries, which need energy to power the blades, also cost more to operate than fixed-blade plows, they are now generally considered to be a tool of last resort for the railroads that own them.

The few remaining rotary plows in North America are either owned by museum railroads or are kept in reserve for areas with poor road access and routine severe snowfall conditions.

The largest remaining fleet of rotaries consists of Union Pacific Railroad's six plows reserved for Donner Pass.

Early rotaries had steam engines inside their car bodies to power the blades; a few are still in working order, and in particular one on the White Pass and Yukon Route in Alaska performs annual demonstration runs through thick snow for the benefit of photographers and railway enthusiasts.

[5] The hall of fame recognizes and establishes an enduring tribute to the people and things that have made significant contribution relating to the railway industry in North America.