by Mia Taylor
Last updated: 5:16 PM ET, Tue August 29, 2017
Amtrak customers in the Midwest are now being served by more efficient and eco-friendly locomotives.
Purchased with $216.5 million in federal funding, the new locomotives provide a 90 percent reduction in emissions and two-thirds reduction in fuel consumption compared to previous locomotives.
Built by California-based Siemens, the locomotives include enhanced smoothness, speed capability and safety features, according to Amtrak.
The 33 new locomotives will depart Chicago on routes that served about 2.6 million customers in the last year, taking travelers to locations in Illinois and Wisconsin, as well as on routes in Missouri and Michigan.
The first of the locomotives were recently unveiled at a news conference at Chicago's Union Station. Additional benefits include lower maintenance costs and quieter operation. They will operate at speeds of up to 125 mph, with faster acceleration and braking.
"We look forward to the improved efficiency and reliability that the Siemens Charger locomotives bring to intercity passenger rail services across the Midwest," David Simon, Director of the Bureau of Transit, Local Roads, Railroads and Harbors at the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, said in a statement.
The new Charger units in the Midwest join Siemens Charger clean diesel-electric locomotives that were added to service lines in California during April and Washington in May.
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The diesel-electric operation of the locomotives means they consume more than three times less fuel than comparable gallons per passenger for two-person car travel.
"These are among the nation's cleanest locomotives and we're proud to have not only worked closely with Amtrak and the state DOTs to bring these to the Midwest but also our robust chain of suppliers from across the country," Armin Kick, Siemens Mobility Vice President for Locomotives, said in a statement.
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