Karl Rethwisch, a retired CB&Q Engineer, contributes the following information: Numbers 9208 and 9209, the assigned Rock Falls engines, were equipped with ATS, Automatic Train Stop. This equipment had been removed from C&NW steam power and applied to these engines in order to allow them to operate between Sterling and Agnew on the C&NW main line. The jobs, Train Number 92 and 93, worked between Sterling and Denrock. In the event of there being no ATS equipped engine for the jobs the Q paid a fine to the C&NW to operate non-ATS locomotives. In order for the 'blind' engine to use the C&NW main, the railroad (C&NW) had to hold all of their trains east of Sterling and west of Agnew until the Q train cleared the appropriate control point. This situation was occasioned by the lack of C&NW signals in the field. Without intermediate signals there was no indication of block conditions available to the CB&Q crews.