cplchanb
Senior Member
Fine about used but not our own ancient garbage that we are tearing apart to cannibalize or rebuild.
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GO Transit Fleet Equipment and other
- Thread starter drum118
- Start date
Bordercollie
Senior Member
And what other options are available?
lastcommodore
Active Member
To be frank, this is one of the better decisions out of the options available.
- Order a new model of currently manufactured diesel locomotives. GO now has to train their employees on a new locomotive and reduce the uniformity of their current fleet, only to probably retire them anyways later down the line. Not that expensive, but increases complexity and labour.
- Place a massive order of the current diesel locos GO owns to convince the manu to restart manufacturing. So now we have a whole lot more locos than we are probably going to need, and will need to be replaced later down the line... Very expensive.
- Order new electric locomotives. And run them... where exactly? Very expensive.
- Order new battery locomotives. Battery works best with intermittent catenary, and GO has zero kilometres. Very expensive.
- Order new dual-mode electric-diesel locomotives. Frankly, I believe this is the best option for long-term sustainability. Very expensive.
- Buy used locos that match the current locos. Cheap, easy, and stretches the longevity of the system.
If I was in charge, my go-to option would be to look at new EDMUs if i had the cash. If not, buying used locos seem natural to hold the system over until electrification. Granted, the current timeline for electrification is... not good, but unfortunately because of that we are in a permanent state of "Electrification is just around the corner!" (From a rail vehicle lifetime perspective.) major buy in of diesel locos are difficult to justify.
I would also like to argue: This is not "ancient garbage". Trains are incredible ships-of-theseuses where each part is replaced and fixed over time. These things measure their lifetimes in several decades, and the F59PH aren't pushovers. They're not as powerful as the MPs, but a 6 car train hauled by a F59PH should perform similarly to a 12 car train hauled by a MP54AC.
- Order a new model of currently manufactured diesel locomotives. GO now has to train their employees on a new locomotive and reduce the uniformity of their current fleet, only to probably retire them anyways later down the line. Not that expensive, but increases complexity and labour.
- Place a massive order of the current diesel locos GO owns to convince the manu to restart manufacturing. So now we have a whole lot more locos than we are probably going to need, and will need to be replaced later down the line... Very expensive.
- Order new electric locomotives. And run them... where exactly? Very expensive.
- Order new battery locomotives. Battery works best with intermittent catenary, and GO has zero kilometres. Very expensive.
- Order new dual-mode electric-diesel locomotives. Frankly, I believe this is the best option for long-term sustainability. Very expensive.
- Buy used locos that match the current locos. Cheap, easy, and stretches the longevity of the system.
If I was in charge, my go-to option would be to look at new EDMUs if i had the cash. If not, buying used locos seem natural to hold the system over until electrification. Granted, the current timeline for electrification is... not good, but unfortunately because of that we are in a permanent state of "Electrification is just around the corner!" (From a rail vehicle lifetime perspective.) major buy in of diesel locos are difficult to justify.
I would also like to argue: This is not "ancient garbage". Trains are incredible ships-of-theseuses where each part is replaced and fixed over time. These things measure their lifetimes in several decades, and the F59PH aren't pushovers. They're not as powerful as the MPs, but a 6 car train hauled by a F59PH should perform similarly to a 12 car train hauled by a MP54AC.
RU479
Active Member
I remember for the London GO pilot, only F59s could be used for those trains due to some issue relating to the bridge in St. Mary's and how the MPXpress locomotives could not operate on it. With trains resuming service to Stratford in July (and not going to St Mary's), will MPXpress locomotives be used on those trains?
CMQSD402F9011
Active Member
I recall back in 2025 when a derailment happened on the Dundas sub. CN detoured a 397 on the Guelph sub and was powered by 2 GE GEVOs. Not sure if a ES44/ET44 weighs the same as a MP40?
SaugeenJunction
Senior Member
The dual axel MP40s were restricted over the St. Mary’s bridge, yes. The Stratford service doesn’t have to contend with this, so my expectation is that weekday rush hour trains will be 12-coaches led by and MP40 locos (as they have to pick up a ton of passengers during the rush). On weekends, with Toronto to Stratford and return service, I’d expect these to be shorter trains, probably pulled by F59s. Good variety for the foamers! This is just a guess however.
Looking forward to the first Presto readers being installed in Stratford.
Bordercollie
Senior Member
ES44AC weight 432k lbs
MP40 ph. Weight. 295lbs
But take into consideration the axle weight.
MP40 only had 4 axles so it could be a per axle weight issue rather than a total locomotive weight issue.
SaugeenJunction
Senior Member
Good background. It’s absolutely a weight per axle issue for the St. Mary’s bridge.
Bordercollie
Senior Member
Also the CN steam locomotive 6213 weighs 678,300lbs which is more than both of those but has more axles.
crs1026
Superstar
It’s only a weight issue for the bridge * in its current state of low and historically deferred maintenance *
No reason that it couldn’t be refurbished to enable better service on the line.
- Paul