USA: Commuter rail agencies are being offered flexible options for the lease of ‘like new’ modernised diesel locomotives by Rolling Stock Solutions and its strategic partner Alternate Concepts, with backing from private equity investor Adelphi Capital Advisory.
RSS has acquired an initial fleet of EMD F40PH diesel-electric locomotives which are being rebuilt by Canada’s Cad Railway Industries and its US partner Metro East Industries. The work includes a rebuilt prime mover, EPA Tier 4 compliant head-end power and provision for the installation of PTC.
Deployment of the first locomotives is planned for mid-2023. RSS says they will have a 20+ year service life, offering greater reliability and lower noise, NOx, hydrocarbon and PM10 emissions than most locos in service today. They meet industry standards which will enable them to ‘seamlessly’ integrate into existing operating and maintenance programmes.
RSS says its locomotives will be 100% Buy America compliant, and lease contracts will be eligible for FTA capital investment funding.
Ageing fleets
According to the company, the average age of diesel-electric locomotives used by US commuter rail operators is now 26 years, and maintenance costs per passenger-km have increased by 33% in recent years.
Most existing locos are pre-Tier 0 rated, with an emissions profile ‘far below’ the current Tier 4 standards for new locomotives or the intermediate tiers introduced over the last 20 years.
RSS said procurement cycles for new build locomotives can be up to 10 years, and there is a limited US supply base for Buy America compliant Tier 4 locomotives.
Rolling Stock Solutions
RSS is led by CEO Phil Puccia, a former Deputy General Manager of Boston’s Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority who spent 12 years at JP Morgan.
Boston-based commuter, urban rail and bus operator ACI is led by CEO Jim O’Leary and COO Mike Mulhern, both former MBTA General Managers.
‘Having spent two decades at the intersection of government operations and finance, I know well the imperative for agency leaders to deliver reliable, best-in-class transit service on a tight budget’, said Puccia. ‘We believe the RSS lease fleet provides commuter rail operators with a new, flexible resource to sustain and strengthen their service posture at a reasonable cost.’