The GE Dash 8-40BW, or B40-8W, is a four-axle

diesel locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the prime mover (locomotive), power source is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is con ...

built by

GE Transportation GE Transportation is a division of Wabtec. It was known as GE Rail and owned by General Electric until sold to Wabtec on February 25, 2019. The organization manufactures equipment for the railroad, marine, mining, drilling and energy generatio ...

for the

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the largest Class 1 railroads in the United States between 1859 and 1996. The Santa Fe was a pioneer in intermodal freight transport; at vario ...

(ATSF) between 1990 and 1992. It is part of the

GE Dash 8 Series The Dash 8 Series is a line of diesel-electric locomotive, diesel-electric freight locomotives built by GE Transportation. It replaced the GE Dash 7 Series, Dash 7 Series in the mid-1980s, and was superseded by the GE Dash 9 Series, Dash 9 Series ...

of freight locomotives. The locomotive model designation is interpreted as follows: B (B type truck arrangement, 2 axles per truck) 40 (4000

horsepower Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are t ...

) -8 (the generation when it was designed, in this case meaning the late 1980s) W (Widecab). ATSF was the only railroad to order the B40-8W, and a

B unit A B-unit, in railroad terminology, is a locomotive unit (generally a diesel locomotive) which does not have a control cab or crew compartment, and must therefore be operated in tandem with another coupled locomotive with a cab (an A-unit) ...

(cabless booster unit) was almost made with it, but because the price would have been the same for B40-8Ws with cabs or without, they decided to order units with cabs only. All of ATSF's B40-8Ws were passed on to

BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three Transcontinental railroad, transcontine ...

, with some later sold to other railroads.

Disposition

While originally built for high-speed intermodal service, by the mid-2000s the B40-8Ws had been bumped to local service. In mid-2010, BNSF put 15 B40-8Ws up for sale. These units were on long-term lease and were returned to their lessor. As of 2016, three units are operated by the

Providence and Worcester Railroad The Providence and Worcester Railroad (P&W; ) is a Class II railroad operating of tracks in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, as well as New York (state), New York via trackage rights. The company was founded in 1844 to build ...

in New England. The rest of BNSF's B40-8W fleet is, as of 2019, undergoing rebuild and refreshment at GE as preparation for their new role as local freight units.

Original owners

Current owners

Preservation

On June 14, 2023, BNSF donated unit #537 to the Railroading Heritage of Midwest America in

Silvis, Illinois Silvis is a city in Rock Island County, Illinois, Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. It is part of a larger metropolitan area known as the Quad Cities. The Quad Cities Metropolitan Area is situated across four counties in Illinois and Io ...

. It is the first of the type to be preserved. In October 2024, the locomotive was repainted back to its ATSF Warbonnet colors.

References

* * * Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway locomotives Dash 8-40BW B-B locomotives Diesel–electric locomotives of the United States Freight locomotives Standard-gauge locomotives of the United States Standard-gauge locomotives of Canada Diesel–electric locomotives of Canada {{diesel-loco-stub

Disposition

Original owners

Current owners

Preservation

See also

References