(Bloomberg News circulated the following article on September 30.)
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific Corp. ordered 315 locomotives from General Electric Co. and General Motors Corp. to meet pollutant-emissions standards that take effect Jan. 1.
Delivery of the locomotives will begin next year, said Mark Davis, a spokesman for the Omaha-based railroad. He wouldn’t say how many are being purchased from each maker or provide the value of the order.
Union Pacific, which also is adding equipment to help reduce delays, said the new locomotives meet U.S. “Tier 2” pollutant standards and provide the same horsepower as current models while cutting emissions as much as 40 percent.
The railroad, which has 7,861 locomotives now, said it began testing the new models more than a year ago.
U.S. railroads signed an agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency during the 1990s to reduce emissions by at least 40 percent on locomotives delivered after Jan. 1, 2005, Davis said.