The railway ascends the mountain beginning at an elevation of approximately 2,700 feet (820 m) above sea level and ending at the summit of Mt. Washington at an elevation of 6,288 feet (1,917 m). It is the second steepest rack railway in the world[2] with an average grade of over 25% and a maximum grade of 37.41%. The railway is still in operation, using seven steam locomotives and one biodiesel powered locomotive. The train ascends the mountain at 2.8 miles per hour and descends at 4.6 mph, although the diesel can go up in as little as 37 minutes. It takes approximately 65 minutes to ascend and 40 minutes to descend. The railway is approximately 3 miles long.