The Evolution Series is a line of
diesel locomotives built by
GE Transportation Systems
GE Transportation is a division of Wabtec. It was known as GE Rail and owned by General Electric until sold to Wabtec on February 25, 2019. The organization manufactures equipment for the railroad, marine, mining, drilling and energy generati ...
(now owned by
Wabtec
Wabtec Corporation (derived from Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation) is an American company formed by the merger of the Westinghouse Air Brake Company (WABCO) and MotivePower Industries Corporation in 1999. It is headquartered ...
), initially designed to meet the
U.S.
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
EPA's
Tier 2 locomotive emissions standards that took effect in 2005. The first pre-production units were built in 2003. Evolution Series locomotives are equipped with either AC or DC
traction motors
A traction motor is an electric motor used for propulsion of a vehicle, such as locomotives, electric or hydrogen vehicles, elevators or electric multiple unit.
Traction motors are used in electrically powered rail vehicles (electric multiple uni ...
, depending on the customer's preference. All are powered by the
GE GEVO
List of engines produced by GE Transportation Systems and GE Jenbacher (GE Energy). Where possible, recent examples of usage are shown.
Diesel engines
;FDL series engine.
The Evolution Series was named as one of the "10 Locomotives That Changed Railroading" by ''
Trains Magazine
''Trains'' is a monthly magazine about trains and railroads aimed at railroad enthusiasts and railroad industry employees. The magazine primarily covers railroad happenings in the United States and Canada, but has some articles on railroading els ...
'' and was the only locomotive introduced after 1972 to be included in that list.
The Evolution Series locomotives are some of the best-selling and most successful freight locomotives in United States history.
Models
Currently, six different Evolution Series models have been produced for the North American market. They are all six axle locomotives and have the wheel arrangement C-C (
AAR classification) or Co′Co′ (
UIC classification
The UIC classification of locomotive axle arrangements, sometimes known as the German classification''The Railway Data File''. Leicester: Silverdale, 2000. p. 52. . or German system,Kalla-Bishop P.M. & Greggio, Luciano, ''Steam Locomotives'', Cre ...
), except for the ES44C4 which has an A1A-A1A wheel arrangement and the
meter-gauge version developed for the Brazilian network ES43BBi which is B-B-B-B.
ES40DC (2004-2008)
![Intermodal (5831026098)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/Intermodal_%285831026098%29.jpg)
The ES40DC (Evolution Series, 4,000 hp, DC traction) replaced the
Dash 9-40CW model in the General Electric catalogue and, like the former model, was delivered exclusively to
Norfolk Southern Railway. ES44DCs owned by
CSX Transportation were also given this designation in 2009 after being de-rated to . However, high-horsepower demand on Norfolk Southern made a mandatory repowering of several ES40DC engines into their former ES44DC power.
ES44DC (2005-2010)
![CSX 5358 in Harpers Ferry, WV (2194147136)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3b/CSX_5358_in_Harpers_Ferry%2C_WV_%282194147136%29.jpg)
The ES44DC (Evolution Series, 4,400 hp, DC traction) replaced the
Dash 9-44CW model in the General Electric catalogue. Primary users are
BNSF Railway,
CSX Transportation, and
Canadian National Railway.
Pilbara Iron
Pilbara Iron is a wholly owned subsidiary of the multinational Rio Tinto Group, that manages assets for Hamersley Iron Pty Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Rio Tinto, and Robe River Iron Associates, an unincorporated joint venture between Rio ...
in
Australia ordered a lengthened, international version designated ES44DCi. The extra length is used for a larger radiator to increase cooling capacity in the Australian
outback.
ES44AC (2003-2019)
The ES44AC (Evolution Series, 4,400 hp, AC traction) replaced the
AC4400CW model in the General Electric catalogue. These locomotives have been ordered by every Class I railroad in North America:
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...
(who refers to these locomotives as the ''C45ACCTE''),
BNSF Railway,
CSX Transportation,
Norfolk Southern Railway,
Kansas City Southern Railway
The Kansas City Southern Railway Company is an American Class I railroad. Founded in 1887, it operates in 10 midwestern and southeastern U.S. states: Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and ...
,
Kansas City Southern de Mexico,
Ferromex
Ferromex (syllabic abbreviation of Ferrocarril Mexicano or "Mexican Railway") is a private rail consortium that operates the largest (by mileage) railway in Mexico with combined mileage (Ferromex + Ferrosur) of and is part of the North American ...
,
Canadian Pacific Railway, and
Canadian National Railway.
ES44C4 (2009-2015)
![BNSF 8013](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/99/BNSF_8013.jpg)
The ES44C4 (Evolution Series, 4,400 hp, C to denote 3 axles per truck, 4 traction motors) was introduced in 2009. While similar to the ES44AC, the ES44C4 has two traction motors per truck, instead of the conventional three such as on the ES44AC. No ES44C4s with DC traction were built. The center axle of each truck is unpowered, giving an A1A-A1A wheel arrangement. BNSF Railway is the launch customer for this model, ordering an initial batch of 25 units numbered 6600–6624. The ES44C4 was initially only built for BNSF. The 4200s and units 7921-7999 are certified as Tier 4 Credit units, while the others are Tier 2 or Tier 3. On 30 January 2014
Florida East Coast Railway announced that they would buy 24 ES44C4s, to be numbered 800–823, for heavy haul service and intermodal traffic. All were delivered by the end of 2014, in order to beat the EPA's deadline on exhaust-emissions standards for new-built Tier 3 locomotives.
A feature of these units is a variable traction control system in their computer systems. One of the differences between an ES44AC and an ES44C4 are the air cylinders and linkages on the truck sideframes of the ES44C4; these are part of the traction control system. Every time a variation in grade, traction, or wheel slip occurs, the computer adjusts the pressure in these cylinders to maintain sufficient adhesion, by varying the weight on the drive axles.
ES44DCi/ES44ACi
![Brockman 4 train 5](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/Brockman_4_train_5.JPG)
The ES44DCi (Evolution Series, 4400 horsepower, DC traction, international version) was built for the
Rio Tinto Rio Tinto, meaning "red river", may refer to:
Businesses
* Rio Tinto (corporation), an Anglo-Australian multinational mining and resources corporation
** Rio Tinto Alcan, based in Canada
** Rio Tinto Borax in America
*** Rio Tinto Borax Mine, ...
railway in Australia. The ES44ACi was built for the
Roy Hill
The Roy Hill mine is an iron ore mine in the Chichester Range in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, located north of Newman and south of Port Hedland. With indicated and inferred reserves of more than , it is expected to become one of ...
and
Rio Tinto Group.
Rio Tinto's units can be remotely driven, meaning nobody has to be in the cab as they can be controlled from a control center.
The ES44ACi/DCi is essentially an ES44AC/DC in a
GE AC6000CW
The AC6000CW is a diesel electric locomotive built between 1995 and 2001 by GE Transportation. It is among the world's most powerful single-engined diesel locomotives. The locomotive was designed for extremely high horsepower needs, such as pu ...
's body, with the radiator at the end protruding out over the rear deck in the same way the AC6000CW does. The locomotive's large radiator allows it to handle the Australian outback's extreme temperatures.
Roy Hill has ordered 21 ES44ACi locomotives, and is currently in possession of all 21 locomotives (numbered 1001 "Ginny"-1021). Rio Tinto ordered 100 ES44DCi locomotives and has all 100 (numbered 8100–8199) and 21 ES44ACi locomotives (numbered 9100–9120) and more are on order.
Ferromex also acquired 50 ES44ACi. As the construction of these locomotives was subsequent to the new environmental laws of the US, GE cataloged them only as ES44ACi, although in the external technical specifications of the locomotives say ES44AC). These locomotives can no longer reenter the US operating.
ET44AC/ET44C4 (2012-Present)
![Bnsf 3680](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ec/Bnsf_3680.jpg)
The ET44AC (Evolution Series Tier 4, 4,400 hp, AC traction) replaces the
ES44AC
The Evolution Series is a line of diesel locomotives built by GE Transportation Systems (now owned by Wabtec), initially designed to meet the U.S. EPA's Tier 2 locomotive emissions standards that took effect in 2005. The first pre-production ...
model. These locomotives have been ordered by most of the Class I railroads in North America, including
Union Pacific
The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pac ...
,
CSX Transportation,
Norfolk Southern
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31, ...
and
Canadian National Railway.
BNSF Railway will be receiving similar ET44C4 locomotives, which have no traction motor on the middle axle of each truck. CSX designates their ET44ACs as ET44AH, due to their locomotives being heavy-ballasted.
TE33A
The TE33A is an export 1520 mm gauge locomotive in the GE Evolution Series.
Identifying features
The Evolution Series locomotives are visually similar to the
AC4400CW, although small differences are evident. The most noticeable difference is the
radiator section at the rear of the locomotive is larger to accommodate the GEVO's Air to air intercoolers. As with the
AC6000CW, the radiators project beyond the end of the hood. On the ES44ACi and ES44DCi models, the radiator extends in the same way as the AC6000CW, protruding out over the rear deck. For the other Evolution Series locomotives, the radiator does not protrude completely over the rear deck, but rather sits nearly flush with the rear of the engine hood. Unlike previous GE locomotives, the grills under the radiator are at two different angles. The increase in radiator size is due to the necessity for greater cooling capacity in the locomotive in order to reduce emissions. The other major difference between the Evolution Series and earlier models are the vents below the radiators, which are larger than those on previous GE locomotives. Also, all Evolution Series units have air conditioners mounted below the cab on the conductor's side.
Operators
Licensed production
Australia
In 2002, GE and
UGL Limited
UGL, formerly known as United Group, is an engineering company. The company provides construction, maintenance, and asset management services to the rail, resources, and infrastructure sectors, and corporate real estate, facilities management, a ...
launched the Evolution Series locomotive, and in 2009, continued their partnership for another 10 years for UGL to distribute and sell GE locomotives in Australia.
India
![ROZA WDG6G](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b0/ROZA_WDG6G.jpg)
In November 2015, it was announced Indian Railways and GE would engage in a 11-year joint venture in which GE would hold a majority stake of 74%, to provide a mix of 1,000 diesel locomotives of type ES 43ACmi which are 4,500 horsepower and type ES 58ACi which are 6,000 horsepower each. Indian Railways designated these 1,676 mm (broad gauge) locomotives as the
WDG-4G class and
WDG-6G class respectively.
General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable en ...
has invested ₹2,052 crore (US$305 million) for its construction. In the $2.6 Billion deal, Indian Railways would purchase 1,000 goods locomotives a year for ten years beginning in 2017; the locomotives would be modified versions of the
GE Evolution series
The Evolution Series is a line of diesel locomotives built by GE Transportation Systems (now owned by Wabtec), initially designed to meet the U.S. EPA's Tier 2 locomotive emissions standards that took effect in 2005. The first pre-production ...
.
/sup> Diesel Locomotive Factory, Marhowrah
The Diesel Locomotive Factory, Marhowrah is a joint venture of GE Transportation of the US with Indian Railways for the production of 1000 high-power freight locomotives over a period of 10 years designed to run on Indian railway tracks. This fac ...
was built by GE for the manufacture of the locomotives.
/sup>
South Africa
Transnet Rail Engineering, Transnet Engineering in South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
has a license to manufacture 233 ES40ACi locomotives for Transnet Freight Rail
Transnet Freight Rail is a South African rail transport company, formerly known as Spoornet. It was part of the South African Railways and Harbours Administration, a state-controlled organisation that employed hundreds of thousands of people ...
, with core components including GEVO-12 engines supplied from the United States.
The first six of these Class 44-000 locomotives were built in Erie, Pennsylvania
Erie (; ) is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. Erie is the fifth largest city in Pennsylvania and the largest city in Northwestern Pennsylvania with a population of 94,831 ...
in April and July 2015. In October 2015, the first of the 227 South African-built locomotives was nearing completion at Transnet Engineering's Koedoespoort shops in Pretoria
Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa.
Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foot ...
.[Railways Africa, 11 Feb 2015: New Transnet Diesel-Electric Locomotives](_blank)
(Accessed 22 Nov 2015)
See also
*EMD SD70 series
The EMD SD70 is a series of diesel-electric locomotives produced by the US company Electro-Motive Diesel in response to the GE Dash 9-44CW. Production commenced in late 1992 and since then over 5,700 units have been produced; most of these are t ...
, a similarly powerful locomotive produced by EMD in response to GE's predecessor of the Evolution Series, the Dash 9 Series.
References
Notes
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
* GE Transportation Systems.
Evolution Series locomotive
'.
* NorthEast Rails.
'. Retrieved on 23 February 2005.
* GE Evolution Locomotives. Published by Voyageur Press 2007
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ge Evolution Series
General Electric locomotives, Evolution Series
C-C locomotives
Diesel-electric locomotives of the United States
A1A-A1A locomotives
EPA Tier 2-compliant locomotives of the United States
Railway locomotives introduced in 2003
Standard gauge locomotives of the United States
Standard gauge locomotives of Canada
Standard gauge locomotives of Mexico
Standard gauge locomotives of China
Standard gauge locomotives of Australia
Standard gauge locomotives of Egypt
5 ft gauge locomotives
5 ft 3 in gauge locomotives
Standard gauge locomotives of Colombia
Diesel-electric locomotives of Canada
Diesel-electric locomotives of Mexico
Diesel-electric locomotives of China
Diesel-electric locomotives of Australia
Diesel-electric locomotives of Egypt
Diesel-electric locomotives of Colombia