I suppose these were developed early on for the mountain passes.
We had a cabin in the Sierras at 7200 before escaping Mexifornia.
Snowfall between 25-30 feet before the drought years. Then down to 15. But, no railroads around ;(
Rotary Snow Plow Returns to Donner Pass
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjBQ3MaBYiU

Now theres one going about the speed I would expect them to. For safety reasons.
Beautiful scenery, now I do miss the cabin some.