EMD GP40P-2 Southern Pacific #3197

Technical Specifics

The GP40P-2 was a passenger-configured variant of the EMD GP40-2 road switcher, produced in extremely limited numbers for Southern Pacific Railroad. Only three units were constructed by the Electro-Motive Division in 1974, making the GP40P-2 one of the rarest members of the broader GP40 family. Southern Pacific ordered the locomotives to handle passenger train assignments, outfitting them with the necessary equipment to supply power and heat to passenger car consists. The designation followed EMD's standard Dash-2 naming convention, which indicated a series of electrical and control system improvements introduced across the GP40 product line during the early 1970s. Following the decline of Southern Pacific's intercity passenger operations, the three GP40P-2 units were eventually reassigned to freight service, a practical repurposing that extended their working lives considerably beyond the passenger era that originally justified their construction. The locomotives proved durable enough to outlast the service role for which they were designed. In subsequent decades, two of the three units passed to Union Pacific Railroad following that carrier's absorption of Southern Pacific in 1996, while the third unit was sold to the Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad, a Chicago-area switching and terminal railroad. The fact that all three units remained in service well into the post-merger period speaks to the fundamental robustness of the GP40-2 platform. Given that only three examples were ever produced, the GP40P-2 occupies a notable place in the history of EMD passenger power as an exceptionally small production run, built during a transitional period when full-scale intercity passenger rail in the United States was contracting sharply following the formation of Amtrak in 1971. Southern Pacific's decision to order new passenger locomotives in 1974 rather than rebuild existing units distinguished the GP40P-2 from many contemporary passenger diesel variants, which were more commonly produced through rebuilding programs applied to older freight equipment.

Operating Railroad

Model Train Manufacturers

Brands that produce EMD GP40P-2 in HO scale

Prototype Reference

Real-world information about this equipment type

Also known as

Frequently Asked Questions