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GO Transit Fleet Equipment and other

Apologies if it's already been discussed earlier in this thread. Some posters on the GO Transit reddit forum are claiming that Metrolinx/ GO transit are already having issues with the MP54's. Apparently they have a notorious failure rate when pulling 12 coaches. People are claiming they're seeing the MP54's only pulling 6 coaches. Any truth to these claims?
It hasn't even been 10 years since GO got their first MP54 and they're already having problems with them. Definitely not good. Wabtec/ Motive Power should never have switched to genset locomotives.
 
Bojaxs said:
Apologies if it's already been discussed earlier in this thread. Some posters on the GO Transit reddit forum are claiming that Metrolinx/ GO transit are already having issues with the MP54's. Apparently they have a notorious failure rate when pulling 12 coaches. People are claiming they're seeing the MP54's only pulling 6 coaches. Any truth to these claims?
It hasn't even been 10 years since GO got their first MP54 and they're already having problems with them. Definitely not good. Wabtec/ Motive Power should never have switched to genset locomotives.
Click to expand...
I have seen the MP54s pulling 6 car consists, however am unaware of the notorious failure rate with 12 car trains.

Though I have heard the MP54s aren’t that reliable so would not be surprised.
 
Bojaxs said:
Wabtec/ Motive Power should never have switched to genset locomotives.
Click to expand...
HSP46 (GEVO-12) wasn’t a bed of roses for MBTA either. And now it looks like they are essentially out of the business anyway with just the GE freight/marine business being promoted on Wabtec’s corporate site
 
dowlingm said:
HSP46 (GEVO-12) wasn’t a bed of roses for MBTA either. And now it looks like they are essentially out of the business anyway with just the GE freight/marine business being promoted on Wabtec’s corporate site
Click to expand...
Also Metrolink in California has been having a lot of issues with their EMD F125s. It seems Siemens is positioning itself to have a monopoly on passenger locomotives in North America with the Charger. No one else seems to be able to produce a reliable competitor.
 
Bojaxs said:
Also Metrolink in California has been having a lot of issues with their EMD F125s. It seems Siemens is positioning itself to have a monopoly on passenger locomotives in North America with the Charger. No one else seems to be able to produce a reliable competitor.
Click to expand...
Wonder if the market ever gets tight enough that Alstom offers an ALP-45 without the panto and transformer.
 
Bojaxs said:
Apologies if it's already been discussed earlier in this thread. Some posters on the GO Transit reddit forum are claiming that Metrolinx/ GO transit are already having issues with the MP54's. Apparently they have a notorious failure rate when pulling 12 coaches. People are claiming they're seeing the MP54's only pulling 6 coaches. Any truth to these claims?
It hasn't even been 10 years since GO got their first MP54 and they're already having problems with them. Definitely not good. Wabtec/ Motive Power should never have switched to genset locomotives.
Click to expand...
The MP54s were specifically designed with the possibility of operating shorter consists with only one of their two prime movers online. This saves a humongous amount of fuel for service versus using both prime movers or the MP40's single 16V-710.

They did have a rather protracted development term, and did have a bunch of peculiar failures early on that had to be remedied by Wabtec, but are now operating quite reliably. Their biggest issue is that they are quite loud inside with both of the engines on, and that has resulted in several crew complaints.

Dan
 
smallspy said:
The MP54s were specifically designed with the possibility of operating shorter consists with only one of their two prime movers online. This saves a humongous amount of fuel for service versus using both prime movers or the MP40's single 16V-710.

They did have a rather protracted development term, and did have a bunch of peculiar failures early on that had to be remedied by Wabtec, but are now operating quite reliably. Their biggest issue is that they are quite loud inside with both of the engines on, and that has resulted in several crew complaints.

Dan
Click to expand...
Well that's good to hear that the rumours of MP54's failing might have been exaggerated. I guess my next question is, Why is GO transit the only commuter rail system in North America operating MP54s? Why is every other system taking a liking to the Siemens Chargers?

Also how does Tri-Rail's Brookville BL36PHs compare to other diesel-electric locomotives?
 
Bojaxs said:
Well that's good to hear that the rumours of MP54's failing might have been exaggerated. I guess my next question is, Why is GO transit the only commuter rail system in North America operating MP54s? Why is every other system taking a liking to the Siemens Chargers?

Also how does Tri-Rail's Brookville BL36PHs compare to other diesel-electric locomotives?
Click to expand...
Why is GO is the only system in NA running 12 car trains with power that is supposed to be able to handle 14 cars???

When was Siemens Changers introduced to the NA market and who for??

Who else has bought Tri-Rail's BL36PH and how many cars can they push/pull??
 
drum118 said:
When was Siemens Changers introduced to the NA market and who for??
Click to expand...
Brightline were their first customers, but Siemens already had a presence in the locomotive market via their Amtrak electrics. Seems like good timing on their part to land a premium product in a visible market just as Amtrak were both expanding via state-supported service but also having to make tough decisions on their P42s.
 
Bojaxs said:
Well that's good to hear that the rumours of MP54's failing might have been exaggerated. I guess my next question is, Why is GO transit the only commuter rail system in North America operating MP54s? Why is every other system taking a liking to the Siemens Chargers?
Click to expand...
It's pretty obvious why if you look at the timelines of when the different loco types were ordered.

Bojaxs said:
Also how does Tri-Rail's Brookville BL36PHs compare to other diesel-electric locomotives?
Click to expand...
They too had some teething issues, but seem to be running pretty reliably. Their biggest issue had more to do with questions about the tendering process rather than their performance.

Dan
 
drum118 said:
Why is GO is the only system in NA running 12 car trains with power that is supposed to be able to handle 14 cars???

When was Siemens Changers introduced to the NA market and who for??

Who else has bought Tri-Rail's BL36PH and how many cars can they push/pull??
Click to expand...
I think the tone was unnecessary, but the first point was going to be what I pointed out. GO runs long trains and has successful ridership.
 
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