GE U23B
GE U23B|
MEC 280, originally built as DH 301, was the first U23B built by GE in 1968. It is seen here working in Ayer, MA, in February 1993 |
| Type and origin |
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| Power type |
Diesel-electric |
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| Builder |
GE Transportation Systems |
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| Model |
U23B |
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| Build date |
August 1968 – June 1977 |
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| Total produced |
481 |
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| Performance figures |
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| Power output |
2,250 hp (1,680 kW) |
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The GE U23B Diesel-electric locomotive was introduced by GE Transportation in 1968 as a medium horsepower roadswitcher, featuring a 12 cylinder FDL engine. It was one of the most successful models of the Universal Series, with railroads ordering it from 1968 until 1977 when it was replaced by the B23-7. 481 units were built, including 16 exported to Peru.
Not many U23Bs still exist, but a few shortline and regional railroads still use them in everyday service. The Georgia Central Railway was one of the last U23B holdouts, rostering almost all of the remaining ex Southern Railway (U.S.) high short hood U23Bs. The Georgia Central as of July of 2015 has all of its U23Bs off of the roster with the 3965 going to the Southern Appalachia Railway Museum in Oak Ridge, TN.
The Huntsville and Madison County Railroad Authority in Huntsville, AL, operates perhaps one of the last U23B's used in daily freight service, as of October 2015. HMCR 9554 was originally built in late 1974 as L&N 2800. The last U23B built, originally Conrail 2798, and more recently Providence and Worcester 2203, is in regular excursion service at the Naugatuck Railroad, operated by the Railroad Museum of New England in Thomaston, Connecticut.
CR 2798 was the last U23B built by GE in 1977, and the last Universal Series locomotive built for
North American use. In this photo, it is leading a westbound train through
Middlefield, Massachusetts, in June 1979.
Original Owners
References
External links
Media related to GE U23B locomotives at Wikimedia Commons