I have read various RR forums in the past year regarding the likely possibility of EMD producing another B-B Geep at this date. Almost all post in these threads said they didn't think so. This is wrong a new Geep model has made it into the 21st Century. However its not very good looking, but I am not a fan of the new safety hood road units so I am partial to the standard cabs of yesteryear. I was unaware if this EMD model was available last year or not but no one mentioned anything other than that green goat loco. But this GP-20D switcher is in the current catalog. I guess its the replacement for ageing yard switchers to replace the MP-15. I wonder if any roads have purchased any of these yet? Its all news to me. Link: http://www.gmemd.com/en/locomotive/switcher/gp20d/index.htm Later, ~ Mike
I think GM is trying to caSh in on the ageing gp38 fleet with lower maintennance costs and tier 2 fuel emission compliancy, but boy, that is one of the ugliest potatos ever to come from EMD - looks like a wal-mart job to me! whoppit
The Port Terminal Railway Association (PTRA) in Houston has 24 of the MK1500D's which are essentially the same as the "new" EMD GP-15D. They've had them since 1996 and they are rebuilt from GP7 and GP9 frames with Cat engines. I talked to one of the PTRA guys about these and he says they fill the bill very well for what they use them for....industrial switching and short transfer runs. They are taking a page from Southwest Airilnes by homogenizing their motive power, making maintenance much easier and cheaper. See also... www.ptra.com www.trainweb.org/southwestshorts/ptra.html
It's not EMD but.... Diesel Truck-Engine Switch Locomotives Union Pacific has ordered a prototype diesel truck-engine switch (TES) locomotive for use in medium- to heavy-duty switching operations to reduce air emissions during normal freight movement. It will use two state-of-the art diesel engines developed for large, over-the-road trucks. The truck-engine diesel will power a generator in the same manner as a conventional locomotive and will provide electricity to run the traction motors that turn the wheels. The first TES, which is being built by National Railway Equipment, should arrive in California by May 2005. These initiatives will further increase the effectiveness of rail for fuel efficiency and reduction of NOx emissions. Trains are two to four times more fuel efficient that trucks on a ton-mile basis, and are two to three times cleaner, Iden said. By 2012, trains operating in the South Coast Air Basin in California are projected to reduce NOx emissions per ton mile to just over 0.2, compared with 0.6 in 2002.
I like the looks of that one Mike. It's kind of like a retro centercab! Do you know if these are all new from the ground up or, like the others mentioned above, are they converting existing equipment? Russ
I did a Google search for National Railway Equipment it came up empty for the most part. Seems NRE is a (Canadian?) company that remanufactures rolling stock and leases it out with NREX reporting marks, like this photo shows: (From the greight.railfan.ca web site)
