Trains – October 2019

standard on paper. As credits are earned,
builders can use them as they see fit, but
keep the credits earned by each railroad
separate to allow them to be applied to
future locomotive orders. Purchasing
credit locomotives allows railroads to get a
portion of their locomotive needs at a
lower cost with less complexity, as com-
pared with the Tier 4 standard. A builder
can only produce up to half the number of
credit units in a calendar year as com-
pared to Tier 4 locomotives. So, if a build-
er produces 200 new Tier 4 locomotives in
a year, it can only build 100 or fewer credit
locomotives. Each credit unit is equipped
with information on or near its builder
plate that shows what engine family it
belongs to and the emission levels it must
achieve when the time comes to overhaul
the locomotive.
How are credits calculated? A locomo-
tive builder groups a family of engines to-
gether and creates an emission standard
for them. This is known as the Family
Emission Limit and is measured against
the applicable nitrogen oxides or particu-
late matter emission standard being mea-
sured. The difference between the stan-
dard and the Family Emission Limit is
placed into an equation that includes such
factors as the sales-weighted average use-
ful life for the engine family, the number
of locomotives included in the engine
family for that calendar year, and a prora-
tion factor. The latter metric is determined
by a set of tables that estimate year by year
the fraction of a locomotive’s useful
service life that remains as a function of
age. A new locomotive would have a
proration factor of 1.0 while a 20-year old
road locomotive would be 0.27. There are
two tables for determining this figure, one
for road locomotives and another for
switching or yard locomotives.
So, as a locomotive ages, its ability to
generate credits diminishes. A new loco-
motive or one that is defined in the regu-
lations as “freshly manufactured” are the
only types allowed to use the 1.0 multipli-
er in the credit calculation. Locomotives
that are defined as refurbished or remanu-
factured, which are dominating the indus-
try right now, can only achieve 0.6 as a
starting point when used for emission-
credit calculations.
This means as new locomotive sales
continue at a slow pace, the ability for rail-
roads to earn significant amounts of emis-
sion credits across the industry will con-
tinue to be hampered. This will lead to
fewer credit-unit orders in
the future. — Chris Guss

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TrainsMag.com 17

IHB GOES GREEN Indiana Harbor Belt has reintroduced its original paint scheme first used on

diesels in the late 1940s. SW1500 No. 1515 is the first to wear the Pacemaker Green and light-

ning stripe design. The railroad plans to repaint its entire fleet in these colors. Mark Mautner

TIER 4 EMDS FOR CSX CSX Transportation has taken delivery of its first order for 10 EMD

SD70ACe-T4 locomotives, seen here at Cincinnati. The Tier 4-compliant units are in

phosphate service in central Florida after acceptance and setup at Waycross, Ga. Erik Landrum

ALCO HOLDOUT FALLS Western New York & Pennsylvania No. 6002, formerly CSX

Transportation AC6000CW No. 5009, has emerged in this solid black paint scheme. The

railroad is designating the 16-cylinder, 5,800-hp Gevo-equipped units as AC46AHs. Carl Belke