A group of rebuilt F40PH locomotives is entering service on the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s Commuter Rail, part of a new fleet of lease units owned by Rolling Stock Solutions. 

The average age of commuter rail locomotives in the U.S is 28 years, according to Rolling Stock Solutions CEO Phil Puccia, and many agencies are looking to upgrade their fleets. But acquiring and building new locomotives can take years, so RSS purchased a small fleet of former Amtrak F40PH locomotives (12 in total) and has been rebuilding them at Metro East Industries in East St. Louis, Ill.

“The F40PH was probably one of the most widely used locomotives in the country, and so we wanted to be able to provide a locomotive that the mechanical and operations people already knew,” Puccia told Railway Age. “The F40PH is basically the Toyota Camry of locomotives.”

The first unit went into service on MBTA earlier this year, and Puccia said additional units will be entering service in the coming weeks and months. Other transit agencies have also expressed interest in RSS’ locomotives. 

—Justin Franz