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The GE U23B is a 2,250 horsepower diesel-electric locomotive built by GE Transportation from 1968 to 1977. It was one of the most successful models of the Universal Series, with 481 units built, including 16 exported to Peru. The U23B was replaced by the B23-7.
Featuring a 12 cylinder FDL engine, the U23B was a derivative of the U30B with a lower horsepower rating, producing 2,250 hp compared to the U30B's 3,000 hp. [1]
A variant with 6 axles instead of 4 was produced, known as the U23C.
| Image | Railroad | Quantity | Numbers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway | 49 | 6300-6348 | |
| Chesapeake and Ohio Railway | 30 | 2300–2329 | Blomberg trucks | |
 | Conrail | 10 | 2789–2798 | |
| Delaware and Hudson Railway | 16 | 301-316 | ||
| Ferrocarril del Pacífico | 10 | 537-546 | ||
| Lehigh Valley Railroad | 12 | 501-512 | financed by USRA, to Conrail 2777–2788 in 1976 | |
 | Louisville and Nashville Railroad | 90 | 2708–2772, 2800–2824 | FB-2 trucks |
| Milwaukee Road | 5 | 4800-4804 | ||
| Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad | 3 | 350-352 | ||
 | Missouri Pacific Railroad | 39 | 668-674, 2257–2288 | FB-2 trucks |
| Monon Railroad | 8 | 601-608 | to L&N 2700–2707 in 1971 | |
| Ferrocarriles Nacionales de México | 30 | 9100-9129 | 9114-9121 AAR type-B trucks, all others FB-2 | |
| Penn Central Transportation | 77 | 2700–2776 | to Conrail 2700–2776 in 1976 | |
| Southern Peru Copper | 16 | 40-45, 50-59 | FB-2 trucks | |
| Southern Railway | 70 | 3900-3969 | High-nose, 3900–3914 with AAR type-B trucks, 3935–3969 with FB-2, all long hood forward | |
| Texas Utilities | 1 | 103 | ||
 | Western Pacific Railroad | 15 | 2251–2265 | Blomberg trucks |
 | This section possibly contains original research .(August 2021) |
Not many U23Bs still exist, but a few shortline and regional railroads still use them in everyday service. The Georgia Central Railway was one of the last U23B holdouts, rostering almost all of the remaining ex Southern Railway (U.S.) high short hood U23Bs. The Georgia Central as of July 2015 has all of its U23Bs off of the roster with the 3965 going to the Southern Appalachia Railway Museum in Oak Ridge, TN. Another U23B, CSX 9553, former L&N 2817, is preserved at the museum and is operable.
The Huntsville and Madison County Railroad Authority in Huntsville, AL, operates one of the last U23B's used in daily freight service, as of April 2020. HMCR 9554 was originally built in late 1974 as L&N 2800. The last U23B built, originally Conrail 2798, and more recently Providence and Worcester 2203, is in regular excursion service at the Naugatuck Railroad, operated by the Railroad Museum of New England in Thomaston, Connecticut.
Western Rail Inc in Airway Heights, WA currently has a U23B that is leased out to other railroads. It is numbered NIWX 2204 and is a Northern Illinois and Wisconsin locomotive. RJ Corman operates at least one, Road Number 2300, after acquiring the Lehigh Railway short line in Northeast Pennsylvania.
The GE U25B is General Electric's first independent entry into the United States domestic road switcher diesel-electric locomotive railroad market for heavy production road locomotives since 1936. From 1940 through 1953, GE participated in a design, production, and marketing consortium (Alco-GE) for diesel-electric locomotives with the American Locomotive Company. In 1956 the GE Universal Series of diesel locomotives was founded for the export market. The U25B was the first attempt at the domestic market since its termination of the consortium agreement with Alco.
The GE U28B diesel-electric locomotive model replaced the U25B in early 1966, featuring a slightly uprated prime mover. Early units had the same car body styling as the U25B, while later units had design features more in common with later models. After only a year of production, this model was superseded by the U30B.
The U28C locomotive was developed by General Electric from the U25C, with a slight increase in power of 300 hp (224 kW). A passenger-hauling variant, the U28CG, was also produced for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway.
The EMD GP30 is a 2,250 hp (1,680 kW) four-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division of La Grange, Illinois between July 1961 and November 1963. A total of 948 units were built for railroads in the United States and Canada, including 40 cabless B units for the Union Pacific Railroad.
The EMD E8 is a 2,250-horsepower (1,678 kW), A1A-A1A passenger-train locomotive built by General Motors' Electro-Motive Division (EMD) of La Grange, Illinois. A total of 450 cab versions, or E8As, were built from August 1949 to January 1954, 447 for the U.S. and 3 for Canada. 46 E8Bs were built from December 1949 to January 1954, all for the U.S. The 2,250 hp came from two 12 cylinder model 567B engines, each driving a generator to power the two traction motors on one truck. The E8 was the ninth model in the line of passenger diesels of similar design known as EMD E-units. Starting in September 1953, a total of 21 E8As were built which used either the 567BC or 567C engines.
The EMD F3 is a 1,500-horsepower (1,100 kW) B-B freight- and passenger-hauling carbody diesel locomotive produced between July 1945 and February 1949 by General Motors’ Electro-Motive Division. Final assembly was at GM-EMD's La Grange, Illinois plant. A total of 1,111 cab-equipped lead A units and 696 cabless booster B units were built.
The EMD SW1 is a 600-horsepower (450 kW) diesel-electric switcher locomotive built by General Motors' Electro-Motive Corporation between December 1938 and November 1953. Final assembly was at EMD's plant at LaGrange (McCook) Illinois. The SW1 was the second generation of 3,402 cu in (55.75 L) switcher from EMD, succeeding the SC and SW. The most significant change from those earlier models was the use of an engine of EMD's own design, the then-new 567 engine, here in 600 hp (450 kW) V6 form. 661 locomotives of this design were built, with a gap in production between March 1943 and September 1945 due to World War II.
The EMD SD40-2 is a 3,000-horsepower (2,200 kW) C-C diesel-electric locomotive built by EMD from 1972 to 1989.
The EMD SD24 was a 2,400 hp (1,800 kW) six-axle (C-C) diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors' Electro-Motive Division of La Grange, Illinois between July 1958 and March 1963. A total of 224 units were built for customers in the United States, comprising 179 regular, cab-equipped locomotives and 45 cabless B units. The latter were built solely for the Union Pacific Railroad.
The EMD GP9 is a four-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors' Electro-Motive Division between 1954 and 1959. The GP9 succeeded the GP7 as the second model of EMD's General Purpose (GP) line, incorporating a new sixteen-cylinder engine which generated 1,750 horsepower (1.30 MW). This locomotive type was offered both with and without control cabs; locomotives built without control cabs were called GP9B locomotives.
The EMDSD7 is a model of 6-axle diesel locomotive built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division between May 1951 and November 1953. It had an EMD 567B 16-cylinder engine producing 1,500 horsepower (1.12 MW) for its six traction motors. United States railroads bought 188 units.
The EMD SD40 is an American 6-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division between January 1966 and August 1972. 1,268 locomotives were built between 1966 and 1972. In 1972, an improved version with new electronics was developed and marketed as a new locomotive, the SD40-2.
The SD45 is a six-axle diesel-electric locomotive class built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division between 1965 and 1971. It has an EMD 645E3 twenty-cylinder engine generating 3,600 hp (2,680 kW) on the same frame as the SD38, SD39, SD40, and SDP40. As of 2023, most SD45s have been retired, scrapped or rebuilt to SD40-2 standards.
The GE B30-7 is a diesel-electric locomotive model produced by GE from 1977 to 1983 as part of their Dash 7 Series, featuring a 16 cylinder engine producing 3,000 horsepower. A total of 399 units were produced, including 120 cabless B30-7A units. The B30-7AB/A(B) is an unofficial model. The B30-7 was GE's successor to the U30B.
The GE 44-ton switcher is a four-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Electric between 1940 and 1956. It was designed for industrial and light switching duties, often replacing steam locomotives that had previously been assigned these chores.
The ALCO RS-2 is a 1,500–1,600 horsepower (1,100–1,200 kW) B-B diesel-electric locomotive built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) from 1946 to 1950. ALCO introduced the model after World War II as an improvement on the ALCO RS-1. Between 1946 and 1950, 377 examples of the RS-2 were built, primarily for American and Canadian customers.
The GE C40-8W is a 6-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by GE Transportation Systems from 1989 to 1994. Often referred to as the Dash light series, it is part of the GE Dash 8 Series of freight locomotives. This locomotive model is distinguished from the predecessor Dash 8-40C by the addition of a newer "wide" or "safety" cab. A cowl-bodied version of this locomotive, built only for the Canadian market, was the GE Dash 8-40CM.
The ALCO S-2 and S-4 are 1,000-horsepower (746 kW) diesel electric switcher locomotives produced by ALCO and Canadian licensee Montreal Locomotive Works (MLW).
The ALCO FA was a family of B-B diesel locomotives designed to haul freight trains. The locomotives were built by a partnership of ALCO and General Electric in Schenectady, New York, between January 1946 and May 1959. Designed by General Electric's Ray Patten, they were of a cab unit design; both cab-equipped lead FA and cabless booster FB models were built. A dual passenger-freight version, the FPA/FPB, was also offered. It was equipped with a steam generator for heating passenger cars.
The Dash 7 Series is a line of diesel-electric freight locomotives built by GE Transportation. It replaced the Universal Series in the mid-1970s, and was superseded by the Dash 8 Series in the mid-1980s.
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