#amtrak #rail Amtrak, the US long-distance passenger rail-road company, is about to receive the first of 70 new 8,600hp electric locomotives made by Siemens AG to replace stock that is up to 35 years old. Built in the USA, the Amtrak Cities Sprinter ACS-64s will be tested for about 10 weeks before going into service in the US North East by November.
These locomotives, which are based on the European Sprinter, feature regenerative braking that can put up to 5MW of electricity back into the grid through the catenary. According to Amtrak, the new trains are also more efficient and could provide energy savings of more than $300 million over the next two decades. The order was worth about $466 million.
Michael Cahill, president of Siemens Rail Systems (USA), said: “More and more Americans are parking their cars and choosing the comfort and convenience of trains, metros and street-cars.”
The new locomotives will be used on the North Coast Corridor route (from Washington to Boston via New York) and on the Keystone Corridor route (from Philadelphia to Harrisburg), travelling at up to 125mph and 110mph respectively while hauling up to 18 rail-cars.