WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The California State Transportation Authority will fund an initiative by Sierra Northern Railway to convert three additional diesel switchers to hydrogen power, the railroad has announced.
The railroad will receive funding from the transportation authority’s Port and Freight Infrastructure Project through a public-private partnership with the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District. The total project cost will be $19.5 million, and will expand on the railroad’s ongoing efforts to develop its first hydrogen-powered switching unit.
“SERA is extraordinarily proud to be awarded the funds by the California State Transportation Authority as we continue to lead the industry converting our fleet of switching locomotives to hydrogen-powered, zero-emission locomotives,” Sierra Northern President Kennan H. Beard said in a press release. “We believe that through creative public-private partnerships like we have with the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District, we can help the State of California achieve its goals of converting all switching locomotives to a zero emission solution.”
Testing will be conducted on a planned test track at the railroad’s West Sacramento railyard. Testing is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2027, and is intended to lead to Sacramento Northern eventually converting its entire fleet of switchers to hydrogen power. The ultimate goal is for all of the more than 260 switchers in the state to be converted to Sierra’s hydrogen system.
The latest funding builds on the 2021 grant to convert a Tier 0 diesel locomotive and convert it to hydrogen power [see “California Energy Commission awards $4 million for development …,” Trains News Wire, March 18, 2021]. The conversion projects involve integration of an advanced hydrogen fuel cell, hydrogen storage systems, batteries, and system control technologies.
— Updated July 7 at 7:15 a.m. to correct railroad name.
And who has the public liability when one of these things goes “Hindenburg” with predcitable results?
Unless the hydrogen is created using nuclear power for hydrolysis these hydrogen-powered locos are just moving the required pollution from one place to another. Might it be cheaper and more effective to just re-erect the Sacramento Northern electrification instead? Then the RR could choose where to get its juice from which might make the figures look better.
Well I know the Sacramento Northern disappeared in 1983. I think the shortline should be the Sierra Northern?
The lucky RP20BD switchers will be RP20BH at the end of the process.
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Most switcher locomotives in California use an average of 50,000 gallons per year per switcher potentially leading to a reduction of more than 12 million gallons of diesel per year. This is approximately equivalent to the same amount of fuel used each year by 20,000 light-duty vehicles.
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The project partners working together to execute this innovative effort include Sierra Northern Railway, the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District, Railpower Tech LLC, Ballard Power Systems, Velocity Strategies, Gas Technology Institute, WHA International, UC Riverside, College of Engineering – Center for Environmental Research and Technology and Valley Vision.
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Founded in 2003 and headquartered in Woodland (CA), the Sierra Northern Railway (reporting mark SERA) is a common carrier railroad company operating in California. The company owns several right of ways originating from those of the former Sacramento Northern Railroad, Northern Electric Railway, Sierra Railway Company Of California, Western Pacific Railroad, and Yolo Shortline Railroad. It handles all freight operations and track maintenance for its parent company, the Sierra Railroad Company. The tracks that are maintained by Sierra Northern are also used by the Sierra Railroad Company’s tourist trains.
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