To my knowlage a road switcher type loco hasnt been made since....the GP60? And that wasnt really a switcher. What happens when this current crop of GP 30s, 38's, MP-15's Et all die off? Is the road switcher a term of the past? What will the shortlines rely on in 20 years?
Fear not! Wabtech and EMD have an answer! road switcher Wabtech was created through a merger between Motive Power Services Inc. and Westinghouse. Motive Power Services used to known as Morrison-Knudsen.
Looks like a wacky mix of an RS a GE cab and EMD trucks. Is this a coobled together spare parts unit (Like that ugly greengoat) or a brand new build?
There were two smaller GP 15-D units and one GP 20-D unit in Alliance Nebraska a couple of years ago. They were painted blue and lettered CEFX. The GP-20D unit was equipped with dynamic brake. I think they were field testing these units.
The Port Terminal Railroad Authority in Houston, TX has a fleet of the MK1500Ds, 24 to be exact- it also field-tested the six-axle version. This transfer road handles half a million cars yearly with these beasts. The link I posted above is from Wes Carr's Southwest Shorts webpage. Wes is a BNSF dispatcher in Ft. Worth, and is a railfan & photographer whose work I find awesome. Mike Palmieri's Louisiana Railfan Site shows pics of MP2000Ds 2000 and 2001 in use on the New Orleans Public Belt. IIRC, UP and Santa Fe (or was it LA Jct. Ry?) tested a version of this locomotive that was powered by liquified natural gas (LNG) in southern California. As a side note, I see more GP40s converted to GP38s (deturboed, paper air filter added, derated to 2000 HP), and I'm sure GP38s are being rebuilt as they go in for major repairs. Even though Wabtec & EMD have an alternative to the road switcher, I'll wager we'll see rebuilt GP38s and GP40s in service for quite some time, unless a good, cheap alternative fuel is found. [ 14. February 2005, 16:47: Message edited by: friscobob ]
The Green Goat and Green Kid are getting Orders too. They are significant;y cheaper to buy and run. The thing is, EMD built it's stuff to last and even with all the enhancments, the basic system hasn't changed. You'll be seeing 38s and 40s will be around for a long time.
One of those new GP20's showed up in one of my consists a while ago (in transit, wasn't running) so I took a quick tour. It looked like a fun toy to me...great visibility with lots of large windows and low hoods front and back, nice seats, A/C, fridge, all the comforts of home...I just wish I could have heard it run and played around with it a bit. Don't these have 'Cat' engines or am I thinking of something else?
