US rail manufacturer Wabtec will renovate more than 200 locomotives for North American railroad company CSX after signing a further modernisation order for the remainder of its fleet of AC440s vehicles. 

The order will see Wabtec install a suite of digital solutions, innovations and services on the locomotives as part of CSX’s effort to modernise its fleet to enhance operations and reduce emissions through fuel-saving technology. 

Gina Trombley, Wabtec’s executive vice president of sales and marketing, said: “The modernizations will enable CSX to maximize the value of its existing AC4400 fleet. 

“By installing state-of-the-art technology on these locomotives, we are helping to improve locomotive performance, fuel efficiency, and reliability, while also reducing on-going maintenance costs. This modernized fleet is well positioned to support CSX’s long-term sustainability and service goals.” 

Technology installed on the fleet will include Wabtec’s FDL Advantage engine upgrade and the LOCOTROL Expanded Architecture, software enhancing communication technology onboard the locomotives to maintain connectivity for a distributed power system. 

CSX and Wabtec hope to reduce carbon emissions by 170 tons per year for each locomotive, resulting in total reductions of around 35,000 tons per year for the whole fleet, the modernisations are also designed to extend the life of the fleet by several years. 

Work on the modernisations will take place at Wabtec factories between 2024 and 2028, in addition to the existing 260 modernisations currently underway that were previously ordered by CSX. 

Wabtec has signed several modernisation orders in recent years as railroads look to upgrade their fleet to meet efficiency and environmental standards without spending money on brand new vehicles. 

For example, last year the manufacturer signed an order with CN to enhance 60 of its Dash-9 locomotives and transform them from DC to AC-powered traction.