GE P30CH

GE P30CH
File:Amtrak 700 P30CH POOCH.jpg Amtrak #700 P30CH
Type and origin Power type Diesel-electric Builder GE Transportation Systems Model P30CH Build date 1976 Total produced 25
Specifications Configuration: ​  • AAR C-C Gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) Length 72 ft 4 in (22.05 m) Width 10 ft 8.8 in (3.27 m) Height 15 ft 4+1⁄2 in (4.69 m)
Career Nicknames Pooch Last run 1992 Disposition scrapped

The GE P30CH (also nicknamed "POOCH" because of the similarity of the designation) was one of the first brand-new Diesel-electric locomotive models built for Amtrak in its early years. The design was based on the GE U30C, but had a cowl cab like its EMD competitors.

Twenty-five P30CHs were ordered by Amtrak in 1974, just after Amtrak ordered forty EMD SDP40Fs in 1973. Unlike the SDP40F, the P30CH was the first Amtrak locomotive built from the factory to offer HEP (Head End Power).

The six axle P30CHs, which cost Amtrak $480,000 each, were plagued with mechanical problems and were never very popular with crews or Amtrak management. Amtrak shifted preference, and began purchasing in quantity the EMD F40PH in 1976. Some P30CHs were assigned by Amtrak to the Shenandoah route, which ran via Parkersburg, West Virginia, to Cincinnati, Ohio. A number were leased in the late 1970s to the Southern Pacific Railroad where they were used in San Francisco-San Jose, California Peninsula Commute service. In the later years of their Amtrak careers, the locomotives were used regularly into the mid-1980s on the Sunset Limited and Auto Train routes. They had their final runs in late 1992. All were subsequently scrapped. None were preserved.

Roster Table

Original Owner	Road Number	Quantity	Builder Number(s)	Builder Date
Amtrak	700-711	12	40694-40705	8/75
Amtrak	712-718	7	40706-40712	9/75
Amtrak	719-722	4	40713-40716	11/75
Amtrak	723	1	40717	12/75
Amtrak	724	1	40718	1/76

. Source: Extra 2200 South

References

• Solomon, Brian (2004). Amtrak. St. Paul, MN: MBI Publishing. p. 105. ISBN 0-7603-1765-8.

External links

• Amtrak Photo Archives
• P30CH at rrpicturearchives.net