All Aboard the French Fry Express, Arizona’s Train Powered by Vegetable Oil
This eco-friendly way to arrive at Grand Canyon National Park is back for the season.
A trip on the Grand Canyon Railway’s No. 4960 train is like leaping into an Old West time machine that takes you straight to the edge of Grand Canyon National Park. Its vintage charm and the panoramic views from its historic passenger cars are obviously notable, but what truly makes this train so impressive is what it’s powered by: recycled French fry oil.
Originally, of course, the 4960 ran on coal. It was born in 1923 in the City of Brotherly Love, and for decades, it hauled iron and freight across the heartland. By the early 1960s, though, it had been put out to pasture, and was relegated to pulling excursion trains and circus caravans. But in 1989, the 4960 was snatched up by the Grand Canyon Railway (GCR), where it underwent a major makeover, glowing up from a coal-guzzler to a diesel-powered dynamo. Another tune-up in 2009 modified it to run on recycled waste vegetable oil. Hence the playful moniker, the French Fry Express.
“By converting the 4960 ‘French Fry Express’ locomotive to run on recycled waste vegetable oil, we have reduced locomotive emissions by half,” says Sam Langner, GCR’s Community Relations Manager. “Initiatives like this preserve history, pave a more environmentally conscious future, and reduce toxic emissions and the dependency on fossil fuels.” (To his latter point, the Grand Canyon Railway keeps 50,000 cars outside of the National Park annually, which is significant because the EPA reports that rail travel accounts for just two percent of all transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions while minivans and SUVs account for 58 percent.)
It takes about 1,200 gallons of recycled vegetable oil to fuel the 4960 per round trip, and GCR is doing its bit by collecting the stuff from its own on-property restaurants—giving new meaning to the phrase, food as fuel. Joints like its flagship eatery, The Fred Harvey Restaurant, which offers power galore for the 4960 thanks to a deep-fried all-you-can-eat menu that includes beer-battered cod, golden fries, potato cakes, chicken nuggets and tater tots.
“We operate (the 4960) on the first Saturday of each month March through October; these are called Steam Saturdays,” Langner explains. “There are also special runs for Earth Day, Grand Canyon Railway’s anniversary, and 4960’s birthday.” (The GCR otherwise runs 364 days a year, shuttering its doors only on Christmas.)
The 65-mile direct-line adventure to the Grand Canyon begins in Williams, Arizona at the Historic Williams Depot where the train departs at 9:30 a.m. and returns promptly at 5:45 p.m.
GCR offers six classes of services, beginning with the economical Pullman Class ticket ($69.98) and the slightly more expensive Coach Class ticket ($89.98). For passengers looking for more leg room and complimentary munchies, there’s the First Class ticket ($169.98). The Observation Dome Class ticket ($199.98) offers an elevated train ride experience, literally and figuratively. A seat aboard the glass-enclosed streamliner is your passport to unparalleled panoramic views of the high-desert scenery on your way to-and-from the Grand Canyon. Its classier counterpart, the bi-level Luxury Dome Class ticket ($239.98), gives you the same pano-experience with more room to roam.
The Sante Fe, GCR’s 33-seat Luxury Parlor Car, is the most exclusive ticket. A seat onboard the swanky adults-only rail car will set you back $239.98, but it features access to the open-air rear platform where you can imagine what Butch Cassidy might have been feeling as the train clacks across the tracks, an ample spread of booze and swanky foodstuffs (e.g., chocolate-dipped strawberries) and loungey-style comforts such as plush tufted seats.
The ride to the Historic Village at the Grand Canyon’s South Rim takes a little over two hours. This is your jumping-off point to sights like the National Historic Landmark and Swiss chalet-inspired El Tovar Hotel, the rugged 7.8-mile backcountry Bright Angel Trail, and the Hopi House, an Indigenous arts and crafts market modeled after ancient pueblo dwellings that was built in 1905.
Langner is quick to point out that there isn’t much of a difference between the French Fry Express and any other GCR excursion — save for the fact that the 4960’s exhaust emits a fragrance strongly reminiscent of an old-school burger joint.