April 6 marked the beginning of testing of New Jersey Transit’s (NJ Transit) first of 25 new ALP-45 dual-power locomotives manufactured by Alstom. The beginning of testing was celebrated during a ceremony at Newark Penn Station with New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, NJ Transit Chair Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti, NJ Transit President and CEO Kevin Corbett and local officials.
“Since day one, our administration has been committed to building a better, more reliable and sustainable NJ Transit,” said Gov. Murphy. “This locomotive is the first of 25 that will reinvigorate the NJ Transit fleet with new, environmentally-friendly equipment. New Jersey commuters deserve only the best, and that is what we are delivering to them today.”
“These new dual-power locomotives deliver on Gov. Murphy’s commitment to make capital investments in NJ Transit improve service reliability and improve the environment,” said Gutierrez-Scaccetti. “They produce zero emissions when running on electric power and have fewer emissions when running on diesel power then the all-diesel locomotives they are replacing.”
The locomotives will meet the current EPA Tier IV requirements, the most rigorous air quality standard to date for new locomotives, reducing emissions compared to the locomotives to be replaced when operating in diesel mode, and producing zero emissions when operating in electric mode. The ALP-45s offer a significant increase in horsepower, acceleration and available head-end power. The ALP-45 locomotives are designed to operate push-pull passenger train service on both electrified and non-electrified lines at speeds of up to 125 mph in electric mode and up to 100 mph in diesel mode.
“This is a proud moment for NJ Transit and for New Jersey,” said Corbett. “It represents the first tangible evidence of a process we started three years ago to renew our entire rail fleet. One new dual-power locomotive is here today, but more are arriving this year through early next year, and eight more are on order. In just two years, we begin taking delivery of 113 new self-propelled multilevel rail cars to replace the 40-year-old plus Arrow III cars, and all of these new locomotives and rail cars promise to significantly improve service and reliability for our customers.”
The locomotives will undergo dynamic qualification and acceptance testing for about six weeks, at which time they will be prepared to enter revenue service.
