Railroad Trains for the Soul: MP54AC Testing
As mentioned in the previous blog post, GO Transit MP54AC No. 678 underwent testing with some General Electric locomotives in Erie, Pennsylvania last year. This was due to the 2019 closure of the MotivePower Industries (MPI) plant in Boise, Idaho. The freight diesels trailing behind the passenger unit include the GECX AC4400CW prototype No. 4400, a BNSF ET44C4 No. 3940, and the GECX Evolution Hybrid ES44AC No. 2010 (still a fan favorite). Until the early 2010's, Electro-Motive Diesel (EMD) and GE Transportation, the two largest North American freight locomotive builders, did not offer any more passenger-duty diesels with the most advanced technology in maximizing safety and reducing exhaust emissions. Now EMD (under Caterpillar's subsidiary Progress Rail) has built 40 of the Tier 4-compliant F125 units solely for Metrolink by 2021. As of this blog post, the EMD F125 is still listed on the Progress Rail website, although the company has also modernized some existing passenger locomotives such as the F40PH and the F59PHI.
On the other hand, GE only provided some major electrical and mechanical equipment (especially the 12-cylinder GEVO engine) for MPI's Tier 3 AC-traction HSP46 model. These unique locomotives of that type were built entirely for the Boston-area Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) between 2013 and 2014. However, since GE Transportation merged with Wabtec by 2019, the lone MPI passenger model, the MP54AC, would be combined with GE's freight products; it seems as if the big builder is reentering the passenger locomotive market in less than two decades after its final production of the successful GENESIS series. So far, both the EMD F125 and the MPI MP54AC were each purchased by only one railroad: the former for Metrolink and the latter for GO Transit. For that reason, the future of passenger locomotive production for Caterpillar/EMD and Wabtec/GE Transportation is uncertain.
Fortunately, Siemens is still making the high-tech Charger diesels, especially the new long-distance ALC-42 for Amtrak. As a result, the Chargers have been and will be supplanting many older locomotives, including the EMD F59 and the GE P42, on various railroads. This is evidently the likelihood that regardless of the manufacturer, there will always be a future passenger locomotive design with increased reliability, whether for long-distance, intercity/corridor, or commuter rail services in the United States and Canada.