BOSTON – The first of 40 new MotivePower Inc. HSP46 commuter locomotives will enter service Wednesday for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. The first train with the new locomotives, which feature a new MBTA paint scheme, will be No. 213, departing Boston’s North Station at 10:30 a.m., arriving at Haverhill at 11:38 a.m. MBTA is the first customer for the new locomotive design.
The locomotives will be deployed across MBTA’s 12 commuter rail lines and placed in service as they arrive through summer 2015. On Oct. 24, 2013, the first unit was delivered to MBTA’s Boston Engine Terminal to begin testing and training.
The AC traction HSP46 uses a 12-cylinder, 4,650 hp prime mover. It is equipped with a static inverter for head end power, and meets Tier 3 emissions regulations. The AC traction systems, prime movers, head end power equipment, and computer systems are supplied by GE, while MPI supplies the brake, air, and cooling systems.
Orders were placed for 20 of the new units in 2010. In 2012, the MBTA board voted to approve an option for seven more locomotives, and in April 2013 approved the purchase of an additional 13 option locomotives, bringing the current order total to 40 units, Nos. 2000-2039.
