I know an Amtrak engineer. He told me the new Siemen's is a real winner. He is hopeful the entire Amtrak locomotive fleet will be this well designed piece of locomotive power.
Siemens is not a possesive or even a plural, it's just a German family name: _Ernst Werner Siemens (von Siemens from 1888; English: /ˈsiːm.ənz/ SEEM-ənz;[1] German: [ˈziːməns, -mɛns];[2] 13 December 1816 - 6 December 1892) was a German electrical engineer, inventor and industrialist. Siemens's name has been adopted as the SI unit of electrical conductance, the siemens. He founded the electrical and telecommunications conglomerate Siemens._
At some point, I am expecting MARC to wind up with ACS-64s of it's own because of the Brunswick and other noncaternary interchanges at DC Union Station and Baltimore Camden Yards.
The Brightline Chargers don’t usually operate at the same time. It’s usually one engine pulling/pushing the consist while the other is there to give HEP. When the consist gets longer (8 cars) they will start using both engines.
@@damnimloomin it bothered me that he said higher speed rail service when talking about brightline. As you said its 80 mph for them and thats really slow
@@adamknott7830 they are already testing high speed service to be fair I hope they’re able to resolve the level crossing issues along US 1 so they can go the top speed! But yeah 80 is how fast people go on the highway in Florida lol not that appealing on travel time.
@@damnimloomin they dont have a high enough class of rail either if im not mistaken. They built themselves into a max speed of 80 mph which i think makes me more made than the actual speed itself
@@adamknott7830Brightline bought the extra power for their latter phases of service. It's a 79 mph limit in the metro Miami area, or Miami to Palm Beach; a speed that's pushing it for how many people and grade crossings are in play. From Palm Beach to Cocoa, the restored dual track of the FEC is being set up for 110 mph, and the new track from Cocoa to Orlando is set for 125 mph. Their PPTs show a 150 mph design speed for the Tampa extension.
My favorite part of the chargers is how the original platform was properly adapted and modified for use in the US resulting in having a lot of the unique features that give American railroads its own character instead of just simply being a European export with a bell slapped onto it
I test all these locomotive variants at the manufacturing facility definitely the coolest feeling being the one of the first people to start the engine and drive these locomotives with the long lives they will have. It was awesome when 301 came to be the lead engine to take 313 and 314 eventually making their journey with 301,309,313 and 314. Great video I love seeing the appreciation people have for these vehicles!!
As a former passenger of a super liner pulled by one of these engines, it’s safe to say that the charger locomotive shows a ton of commitment to a great future for Amtrack!
Aesthetically, I like the VIA Rail SC-42 over the Amtrak ALC-42 as the VIA Rail one just looks sleeker and better looking IMO. Of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder as most of these Siemens locomotives are good looking.
Quite frankly, at least from european view, north american rail isnt exactly a story of design hits - most of the equipment looks bulky at best. And thats not just the safety regulations - I feel like its just not an important point. The new brightline trains look way better though!
I definitely would be cool to see a railroad review of Metro North or Long Island rail road, Long Island being the busiest commuter rail in the country
I can't remember if he did Metra or not, but in theme with your suggestion I'd hope he does an in depth video on Metra given it's the third busiest commuter rail operator in the country. It'd be even cooler if he did Metra and South Shore Line together given that they (including Amtrak Midwest as well) serve as the primary commuter and extended commuter services for the Chicagoland metropolitan area. I also hope Metra gives up on it's stupid crusade to keep only EMD powered locomotices in it's fleet just because "it's used to working on them." This goes against their multiple claims to wanting to reduce harmful emissions and create a healthier environment for ridership. Given that we are set to replace all of our Nippon sharyo and bombardier Bilevel passenger cars with modern Alstom Coradia Multilevel passenger coaches, it would make a lot of sense to match them with well built, new dedicated passenger locomotives like the Siemens Charger. And yes, I'd miss the F40s, but man are they barely hanging on by a thread even with multiple rebuilds and fantastic maintenance. It's just time. Though I will admit that like most other state funded transit systems, funding is tight and margins are razor thin. So it's understandable. But frustrating.
These Siemens locomotives are very pleasing to the eye, handsome and thoughtfully designed. It would good to see these on our Irish networks, both NIR and Irish Rail. We have some incredibly old GM locomotives still in service, they have outlived everyones expections, a great testimony to the company and their designers.
When I first saw the charger locomotive I was absolutely despised the design, but overtime, this locomotive has proven to be my favorite Tier 4 locomotive
A good majority of operators went with the Siemens chargers. The only operator I know that didn't go with Siemens is Metrolink here in Southern California. Metrolink(and only Metrolink) purchased few EMD F125 locomotives leaving them the odd one out.
My favorite Siemens Chargers were Brightline, VIA Rail and the Amtrak long-distance trains, I can’t wait to see Brightline along with Amtrak’s ALC-42 chargers that are coming soon in Florida!
At first, I wasn't feeling the SC. The more I see it in action, more I have started to like it. I live in Milwaukee and yesterday when I was coming out of the grocery store, the Empire Builder just so happened to come whizzing-by. It was a perfect-shot. I was able to see almost all of the train at the same time. It had an ALC-42 as the lead locomotive, but it also had two GE-P42DC locomotives behind it. It only had 10 maybe 15 cars at the most so I was kind-of confused as to why it needed all those locos. After looking it up I guess it's normal for the Empire Builder to have that many.
A little minor correction they are more eurosprinter. Yes Siemens Mobility has built Chargers on Vectron. But afterall Vectron/and the single Current variant Smartron started in 2010. The Vectron itself was based on both the EuroSprinter (electric) and EuroRunner (diesel)
@@paulwarner5395 I’ve not actually seen one in person. But I feel the same way. Trains shouldn’t sound like trucks. This is why I hate British trains so much lol
Interesting that Europea designed locos are taking over in USA passenger service. In the UK US designed and built locos have taken over the cargo market.
really? That means you guys have mostly Diesel operations? It would make sense most since European Loco makers have deprioritized Diesel a bit, in the US Diesel is still undisputed King in the freight market.
@@tzarcoal1018 Many UK passenger lines are electrified, but not so many of the lines that carry freight, especially branches, so diesel is used more for freight.
What I don’t understand is why many mid-distance and commuter railroad operators are purchasing long distance locomotives when it would be far more economical and efficient to operate multiple units on high-frequency shorter routes (intercity DMUs are a norm in many parts of the world). Perhaps Siemens should consider making hybrid multiple unit sets for regional operators based on the ALC design standard.
I mean, its a whole different beast, considering long DMUs have several smaller engines and are usually DEMUs rather than DMUs. And Siemens only has the Desiro series in that, and its not that good compared to the chargers. Stadler, CAF, Talgo and Alstom are far better choices for DMUs/EMUs/BMUs
Like most things wrong with American infrastructure, it comes down bad regulations. I'm 100% in favor of good regulations that improve safety, but we have a lot of regulations that are there just because that is how we've always done it, with no flexibility granted for new and improved technology.
@@truedarklander Agreed on the DMU front, but honestly, Siemens builds the best EMUs out there (though Stadler does come very close). Especially noteworthy are the regional Desiro HC, which is an absolute rocketship with a huge capacity and a design top speed of 200kph, as well as the Velaro high speed trains.
The issue is reguilations. Trains in the US must be beefy enough to take some damage in a crash. In Europe the thinking is different...focus all regulations to avoid crahes. So most light-weight DMUs / EMUS are impossible to certify for the American market, at least when they run on the same route as freight traffic. There is actually a German DMU operaring somewhere in the US but it is classified as light rail...in Europe it would be a typical train for a regional rail that has low utilistion.
I like the look of the ALCs over the SCs, but the ditch lights aren’t synced at all (unless it’s the typical camera shutter speed not matching the LEDs). Y’all can see it in videos of the ALCs.
I loved the fact that CT rail will actually get chargers as well but what will they be classified as will they actually retired the p-40s and the gp40s and replace them because I'm starting to think that the p-40s and gp40s are just temporary unless if CT rail is planning to use all three locomotives which I doubt because the other two don't comply to tier 4 emission standards. Do you know if CT rail will purchase Venture coaches and cab cars as well or will they keep the mbbs that were given by MBTA and Mafersas from Virginia Railway Express
I heard the chargers failed when Amtrak was testing them in cold weather due to their large vents, it could be possible for the via chargers to suffer from this same problem
amtrak needs the dual powers too for ALB-NYC service. looking most forward to the one that uses panto/ battery with diesel for service to Roanoke, Springfield, and Newport News. Why the heck didnt brightline go panto and why did they decide to go with crossings on new track?
I have mixed thoughts on these locomotives. Whilst I don't mind the ALC-42, I think the SC-44 and SCB-40 are very ugly (as it stands now, I'm indifferent to the Via Rail variant) and I also think the SC-44 is over-rated.
I saw a charger on the empire builder on my way back from seattle to fargo, my train had the p42s and the train going to seattle had the alc-42 chargers
Considering the future of the ACS64 is up in the air do you think you’ll maybe do a video on potential places they could end up whether that’s to Septa, MBTA, MARC NJT
@@BIoknight000 They’re meant to replace MOST of the ACS-64’s which I still find to be surreal given the ACS’ are still relatively new. I think there’ll be a small fleet of ACS’ kept around to handle the long distance traffic that the electrified lines see, as well as work trains and other miscellaneous tasks.
@@justahillbilly7777 I predict there will be a relatively large fleet left, and only a few of the bi-mode units. It's a stupid idea to get rid of so many new units given the very limited market for electric locos in North America
Something tells me Siemens will buy them back and use them for parts for other Charger units (I know the mode of propulsion is different, but many other parts are in common.)
How much grief does The Borgata get from guests that sleep on the windmill side? (I ask because the REVEL also had one - when it was the Hilton Atlantic City, then the Atlantic Club - and I stayed there myself - on the windmill side - on purpose - slept like a brick - during a blizzard.)
Only 7 operate on the Cascades. Initial order was only for 8, and one was totaled on madden voyage, flew off the tracks from a bridge. WSDOT has ordered 2 more since.
May be there will be an opportunity Siemens’ Mireo Plus H hydrogen train soon to enter service in Scotland as with new IRA subsidies may lead to lower operating cost & emphasis on green energy in the future
1. Does anyone know if LIRR still plans to buy these DM's? 2. Does anyone now the dimensions. Specifically, will the be low enough, etc. to fit into LIRR's 63rd Street tunnel along with the other tunnel segments leading to Grand Central LIRR?
Whenever the Chargers start appearing more often, my question is what type of Amtrak units will operate the Pennsylvanian from Philly to Pittsburgh, that type of Amtrak train isn't long distance.... Wonder if they'll use the Dash8s for the Pennsylvanian
I don't get the disgust sentiments toward the SC-44. It is personally my favorite of the platform. Oof, Coaster's chargers? Slap. Imagine if we got all blue chargers. Like in a Trimet blue. Fuck.
I based this on opinion, I like many grew up with the genesis series and will be sad to see it go. I’ve rail-fanned it, even ridden behind it, and I love the charger, but will miss the genesis, purely opinion not based on performance from any locomotive
My experience with the Chargers on the Illinois routes is that they are noticeably quieter, the acceleration is brisk and smooth and you can barely smell any exhaust fumes. I am looking forward to seeing the chargers on our Chicago Metra routes.
These haven't taken over squat as there are well over 200 GE and EMD units still in service compared to a couple dozen Chargers just beginning service in the last couple years. All new locomotives have teething problems to work out, and Siemens is no different.
Outside of Amtrak and the NEC I think a better fit for American operators is the MPXpress series. I can't believe you consistently mention far less successful competitors but never even name the MPXpress.
@@richardscathouse What do you mean? There has long been fierce competition between the primary locomotive manufacturers, mostly GE and EMD, and there is still a great deal of competition between the freight companies (though they do cooperate far more these days than they used to. No one is shooting up a rival engine shed over Raton Pass anymore)
@@andrewreynolds4949 Well, the days of EMD and GE competition are history, since both have pulled out of the freight locomotive market. Wether Caterpillar and Wabtec will be successful and equal competitors is yet to be seen, but as of now, the US railway market is basically dead. The big four railways have arranged themselves into what's essentially four regional monopolies (meaning thar almost anyhwere in the US, if you want to ship something by rail you've got a single option) and there is no longer any significant US-based freight locomotive or passenger stock manufacturer. The result of which can be seen with the huge passenger stock orders coming Siemens's way; since there is basically no competition one company can come in and sweep the entire market. Wether a similar thing will happen when the current crop of GEs and EMDs are due to be replaced is entirely dependent on both Caterpillar and Wabtec (who are both complete newcomers to this) getting their businesses up and running without any money from major orders. And I don't see that happening.
@WorldwideRailfan, I have a question. I live in Japan and passenger trains here have the locomotive car integrated into the passenger wagons themselves. I understand why a non-electric train would have a separate locomotive car but why do the electrified trains still have a separate locomotive? I also notice that they have multiple locomotives and I just don't understand why? Just in case, the first and last cars have cabins for the drivers but usually the second and the second to last cars on commuter rail have the drive motors. All cars have pantographs. The shinkansen (bullet train) as well. I guess, similar to subway cars in New York but with overhead wires compared to the third rail. (Only subways in Japan have the third rail) But commuter rail, long-distance trains, and the shinkansen all have integrated locomotives. Only freight trains have independent engine cars. (Sorry for any incorrect terminology.) It seems wasteful/inefficient to me.
Having separate locomotive and cars is cheaper. Unpowered trailer cars are much cheaper to build and are actually quieter and more comfortable because they don't have any working components like motors. If you have a breakdown of a locomotive, you can switch it out and the rest of the train can operate normally with another locomotive. In trains with integrated locomotives, which are called multiple units in train terms, if you have a breakdown, the whole train cannot move. Also, if the track isn't electrified, but plans to be electrified in the future, you can use a train with a diesel locomotive until the electrification, and then simply change into an electric locomotive. You don't need to buy a whole electrically powered train. Commuter trains are usually multiple units with motors in all cars because they need to stop and start frequently because the stations are very close to each other. A locomotive can't accelerate quickly because it's just a single vehicle pulling the whole train. But over longer distances with fewer stops they are more efficient. Multiple locomotives are used in case when the train is too heavy for a single locomotive or if they are simply transferring a locomotive to another station. It's wasteful to send it alone. It's more efficient when attached to a train. Multiple locomotives also can help trains accelerate quicker so they can operate as commuter trains, but that is very inefficient. I hope this is easy to understand.
While they multiple units have their fair share of advantages (namely better acceleration, weight distribution, hill climbing), locomotives are very useful for mix-and-match trains (many of them are this in NA), diesel trains (bigger generators are more efficient than smaller generators), are more flexible (see RR's reply for more information) and also are better suited for low floor trains including bilevel trains (most notably, the TGV Duplex). For that matter, the shinkansen, a flagship high speed train, may use electric multiple units but the TGV, the other flagship high speed train, is a locomotive hauled high speed train (strictly speaking, they're power cars but the point still stands) and they're still build that way today (compare that with the ICE where only the first two generations are locomotive hauled and the rest are multiple units).
Brightline is not a "higher speed rail" operator. The speed limit on Brightline's entire current line is 79mph, and their trains never even go above 70mph. After the new extension is build they will have a large section of 110mph in addition to their current 79mph trackage and a tiny, 20 mile section of 125mph trackage. So after the upgrade you could say that Brightline will become a "higher speed rail" operator. But they aren't one currently. Right now, Brightline is 100% a conventional speed operator.
@@Neuzahnstein Anything works with enough taxpayer subsidies. Brightline is very clever about extracting up to 90% of government funding and then claiming that they're "privately funded". As soon as the taxpayers realize how much they're subsidizing Brightline, the tap will close. Plus, hasn't Amtrak already done "highER speed rail" on the Wolverine, Lincoln service, and a few other corridors. How come Brightline gets the credit for copying something that Amtrak has been doing for over a decade?
if AMTRAK could get some new cars..... something with WIFI, more 110 volt outlets, bigger TVs, ETC i think it would REALLY help them . right now.... it feels like a trip to 1994 on the Empire Builder...... . like, you cant even charge your phone unless you go to the lounge car and their isnt THAT many outlets in their either! . . free satellite wifi..... a 110 outlet next to every seat.....something newer than a 240P CRT in the lounge car ya know.... bringing them from the late 80s to modern day (and improving safety... as seen with SEVERAL deaths in recent years) . again, that would REALLY help sell tickets
The Vecron has inly been introduced in 2010, so it definitely wasn't a great succes when Amtrak ordered their locos. Fun fact, the Vectron diesel sold that bad in Europe that Siemens isn't offering it anymore. Instead they replaced it with the Vectron dual mode, which can operate under ooverhead wire or diesel. This one, despite just being introduced, sells way better.
They have to keep in sync with New York for the Danbury and Waterford lines as those use the same trains as Wassaic and Poughkeepsie Metro North services. Remember also that Danbury does have some direct service to New York City, so direct trains need to be able to run on 3rd rail. The Hartford line is another story and as you say might be a good fit for DMUs.
I hate the new dual mode chargers. It just doesn’t work for me, I am a big fan of the p-32s and have ridden on the maple leaf and metro north along the Hudson many times. The interior of the cars just looks like a bus and the locomotive is just boring looking.
It's certainly a bit better future but It's certainly a bit better future but if you really want a future for rail you'll need to nationalize the you're rail infrastructure and electrify it.
@@andrewreynolds4949 The railway network wouldn't actually use so much power as to impact the electrical grid, and FYI, electric freight trains are also a thing. Besides, electric railways tend to set up their own power grid. In the long term this would make the network much cheaper to run, as the locomotives are more powerful (meaning you need fewer of them), cheaper to maintain (because they don't need diesel engines) and cheaper to run (no diesel, you can also recover braking energy, which is particularly effective on mountain routes). But of course, the long term benefits would require a lot of upfront investment, and sadly publicly traded companies treat upfront investment like the plague.
@@mikeblatzheim2797 No, electric rail does use massive amounts of power. And I don't know as much about how other electrical systems run, but I read all the time about the railways over in Britain applying for modifications or feeder lines from the national power grid. In any case, they still need large numbers of new power plants to generate that quantity of electricity, and that isn't happening anytime soon. There were actually diesel locomotives designed that were significantly more powerful than are commonly used now (there was a huge power race in the 90s), but for a number of reasons the industry has settled on ~4500 hp as the best standard in North America. This gives more modularity and redundancy, since they can more closely tailor power requirements for better efficiency and because the loss of one unit is less of a loss on the whole train. I would like to find some real hard data someday on the full cost of electrical rail power. I suspect a lot of the advantage of the lower cost and maintenance of electric locomotives has actually been shifted to the greater infrastructure needs rather than eliminated. Electricity still has a market cost, too, which at various points has been higher or lower than diesel fuel. OLE also is a lot more disruptive when it breaks than a single locomotive, and it's much harder to maintain than diesel locomotives you can take to the shop instead. Doubling the infrastructure maintenance requirements in remote terrain (which the US has a lot of) is not a nice prospect. Electric traction is generally better at high speeds and high acceleration, both of which are more important for passenger service than long-haul freight. There are cheaper and more efficient options for improving freight capacity, and not enough benefit from electrification to justify the enormous cost of rebuilding the whole industry compared to the current course of developing greater efficiency with diesel traction. There's some sort of myth going around that the freight rail companies refuse to invest in their systems. That's not the case, they just don't want to invest in highly disruptive projects they won't see the benefits of which break even with the costs for over a hundred years. Forgive me if I think that's generally good business sense, even for most government programs.
@@andrewreynolds4949 The reason why freight railways settled on about 4500 hp is that the more powerful engines were a maintenance nightmare and rather unreliable. The power consumption really isn't that bad. Just think about it, most trains make do with less than 10000 kW, and their frequency is low. A single small powerplant is enough to power dozens of trains, heck, a single wind turbine can generate more electricity than a train would need. Electrification of freight routes does make sense, for reasons I mentioned already. You get cheaper and more powerful locomotives, and a much higher operating efficiency due to, among other things, regenerative braking. No-one is wanting to electrify every single bit of line, because that would indeed be too expensive with too little benefit. However, the electrification of the main lines does make sense; in fact, during the oil crisis a plan was set out for the electrification of all major US routes. The long distances aren't an issue either; look at the former Soviet Union. So it is possible, and according to the plans from the late 70s the break-even would've been achieved within 30 years (a benefit of only electrifying main lines), and then saves billions a year. Of course, when the oil price fell again the private companies pulled out... Especially mountainous routes benefit enormously from electrification. Your power consumption barely goes up due to regenerative braking, and you can make do with far fewer locomotives. The Milwaukee Road had over 1000 miles of electrification and operated successfully for decades; sadly mismanagement and a reluctance to invest after the early 1900s caused the railroad to fail. But their operating losses doubled the year after they got rid of electric trains and sold off the electrical equipment. And these doubled losses include the profit from selling thousands of tonnes of copper.
@@damnimloomin another issue is that the WOH fleet are maintained by NJT at the Meadows Maintenance Complex. The MMC currently has limited space. For only 15 locomotives, the Chargers have a totally different parts bin from the existing NJT fleet. Currently the PL42s are the black sheep of the fleet, however there are about 30 units active. It’s more likely WOH would get something with parts interchangeable with the Bombardier ALP series to replace the EMD’s. Regarding the EMD 40 series they have currently, their issues are more of nurture than nature, specifically the rebuild jobs by Progress Rail (F40 in 2010s) and Morrison-Knudsen (GP40 in 1990s). Basically don’t expect the Chargers to become the replacement for the WOH fleet due to parts bin and mechanical training constraints.
With the amount of money that MTA is spending on Chargers they could've electrified the rest of their diesel sectors, especially LIRR since 3rd rail is quicker/cheaper to build than overhead cable.
There were U.S built options, but political support for these locomotives and the Chinese built passenger cars was obvious. The politicians that supported the purchases all suddenly had huge donations to their reelection campaigns, and State taxpayers paid for them at a time of economic struggle. Buy American was their cry, bought foreign was the result. I wrote to my congressman to complain as the purchases were being contemplated, they blew me off. " Well, they plan to " finish assemble " them in the U.S, but true, the bulk of the manufacturing will be done offshore". Springfield Ma got a Chinese assembly plant ( CRRC). They wired the insides and installed interior hardware to them, that's it. Congressman Neil got reelected, what a " Hero" for his constituents. While the Chinese got a tax break from the City and the State of Ma paid for all the roadway and infrastructure upgrades to the assembly facility. And YES there were US and Canadian manufacturers that offered competitive bids, but they were passed over. Siemens at least agreed to some components of the Chargers to be built in Georgia and California, the Chinese, not so much. Finish assembly facilities only, the bulk of the passenger cars are all China built. America First Obama/ Biden administration at work.
What Chinese passenger cars? The cars that are discussed in this video are also built by Siemens in the US. As far as I'm aware, CRRC only builds light rail vehicles for the US market. As for US-based alternatives, I can't think of a single one, but feel free to enlighten me. When it comes to passenger stock or light rail the only North American option is Bombardier, and they haven't been doing well (nor built good vehicles) for a while now. Sure, going with CRRC is questionable, but your laws demand that the most cost-effective offer for rolling stock be taken. Siemens has their hands full, Bombardier is in the shits and Japanese manufacturers with US factories don't have the right vehicles on offer. So they had to entice a company without a US manufacturing base to set up, and out of all those CRRC presumably ended up being the cheapest. Or paid the most bribes. This isn't a case of some evil politicians selling out your country, it's how the laws governing your free market Capitalism work. And any restrictions that aren't "in the name of national security" (good luck when it comes to light rail equipment) are immediately dismissed as an intrusion into the free market.
Siemens Charger suck for long haul. They are not designed for working on freight rail tracks. They should have gone with Japan's long-haul trains. Also, the long-haul new cars can't even pass inspection at the factory, and have not made it to Pueblo, CO for testing. It requires a crap load of maintenance.
I keep reading that the Siemens locos - electric and diesel, are poorly built and very unreliable - and that much of the work has to be done by 'factory' mechanics. And enormously complex with horrible software. You are saying otherwise. Which is the truth?
Well Siemens makes pretty much half of Europe's locomotives. Both freight and passenger types. They seem to be working. Could be an American version issue or could be a lie. But Siemens ACS 64 locomotives have worked reliability for a long time.
Not necessary. I think there will be no cargo versions. The basic version, the Siemens Vectron, does not have a freight version either. These machines are universal machines, have a starting tractive force that is 10 percent higher than the force that a GP38-2, for example, can generate. That doesn't change if you change the transmission. So you can leave it alone..... ;)
@@Hauketal Yes, well, I know. It's just something that Americans have to get used to. They have had four-axle locomotives in freight service for years, but less in heavy service. In American conditions, you can't get very far with a four-axle locomotive. To achieve the same tractive effort as with a four-unit consist of six-axle American-style locomotives, you would have to use six Chargers. No American railroad company would do this without necessity, it would simply be uneconomical. Ultimately, there is simply no need for four-axle freight locomotives. So no one will design and build such locomotives specially.....
@@pearlyhumbucker9065 Maybe if there is enough demand, Siemens will derive a 6-axle variant. But the Charger was mostly an opening without competition, as US manufacturers just didn't bid. For a freight diesel the situation is different, I don't expect Siemens to make the effort to get into that market. In Europe, the 4-to-6 conversion has already been done with an electric: The German class 152 (4-axle) was used as a base for the Danish EG3 (6-axle).
@@Hauketal Well, that probably wasn't a 4-to-6 conversion. The EG was an extended EuroSprinter based on the modular design used in the 152, i.e. an independent (further) development of the ES64, after all the EG was longer and heavier, but did not have quite as much power as the 152, and it is also a multi-system locomotive But whatever. The mere fact that it is an electric locomotive makes this argument invalid - the Americans do not buy freight locomotives in carbody form, which means that a 4-to-6 conversion of the Charger is off the table.
Everything has been Europeanized but we’re told to be happy cause it isn’t Chinese so it isn’t spying on us. Once the Sprinters arrives, all the dominoes started falling in favor of Siemens. It’s like no other manufacturers are even trying. Sad and frustrating. All this takeover happened in less than a decade. I like competition but it’s like there is none anymore. So all the “rebuilding America’s infrastructure” is bankrolling one overseas company. And who knows how long this phase will last. Hopefully not forever.
@@MrMarshmallow26 Well they did announce the Amtrak Airo sets in the winter. Long Distance locomotives are being phased out for the ALC-42 Charger. Sleeper cars news wise are still up in the air, but mostly be based on the Nightjet.
@@Eaglescout217 The Airo sets are only for intercity routes. A separate RFP was put out by Amtrak seeking a manufacturer for new long distance equipment. Nothing has been said about proposals though despite results being due a month or two ago… unless the potential manufacturers requested an extension.
