For railroads the maintenance of their tracks and right of way is a pivotal part to their success and safety. In order to keep a well-balanced and smooth roadbed means a good portion of ballast must be laid down and reapplied when necessary. Usually a string of ballast hoppers are called in for this job. Unlike a regular open top hopper car ballast hoppers have specialized gates at the bottom of the bed that allows the ballast to be spread to the sides of the rail. Most railroads had their own fleet for this matter but also will lease from companies such as Herzog which owns a large fleet of ballast hoppers. The Atlas 41’ Ballast Hopper will help your railroad accomplish necessary track work. Features Crisp painting and printing Durable body Free rolling trucks Detailed brakewheel Knuckle couplers