EMD SD60E Norfolk Southern #6920

Technical Specifics

The SD60E represents Norfolk Southern's effort to extend the service life of its aging SD60 fleet through a comprehensive rebuilding program carried out at the railroad's Juniata Shops in Altoona, Pennsylvania. The program began with the delivery of a prototype unit in 2010, with the bulk of production occurring between 2013 and 2017. Rather than simply refreshing worn components, Norfolk Southern undertook a thoroughgoing transformation of the original locomotives, giving them a distinctly modern appearance and substantially upgraded mechanical and electrical systems. Norfolk Southern assembled its pool of rebuild candidates from multiple sources, including units that had originated with Conrail and additional SD60 cores purchased specifically for the program from Helm Leasing. The railroad initially planned to rebuild a total of 240 locomotives under this initiative. However, the program was discontinued after approximately 135 units had been completed, a decision that left a sizeable inventory of unrebuilt SD60, SD60M, and SD60I locomotives without a long-term future on the railroad. Those remaining units were subsequently sold off or scrapped in 2019. The SD60E occupies a notable place in recent Norfolk Southern motive power history as an example of the railroad's preference for internally managed locomotive rebuilding over outright new purchases during certain periods. In a minor but interesting footnote to the program's history, two SD60E units were regeared in May 2021 to allow operation at up to 79 miles per hour, assigning them to passenger excursion duties on the railroad's Office Car Special train, a role quite different from the heavy freight service for which the original SD60 had been designed.

Operating Railroad

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Brands that produce EMD SD60E in HO scale

Prototype Reference

Real-world information about this equipment type

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