FRA grant to fund overhaul of Amtrak Charger locomotives

A $140 million grant from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) will fund updates to passenger locomotives that serve Amtrak’s Midwest and Pacific Northwest routes.

The funds will provide essential mid-life overhauls for the 41-unit Charger locomotive fleet that operate along nine corridors in the Midwest and Pacific Northwest. Planned improvements include overhauls to the wheel sets, air compressors, traction motors, turbochargers, high-pressure fuel pumps and diesel engines.

In partnership with Amtrak, a coalition of states’ transportation departments — Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Oregon and Washington — applied for the grant to help modernize the locomotive fleet on Amtrak’s Hiawatha, Blue Water, Cascades, Lincoln, Illini/Saluki, Illinois Zephyr, Missouri River Runner and Pere Marquette routes.

“This grant will help keep the locomotive fleet in a state of good repair, enhancing rail line resiliency, and preventing unplanned outages,” said Wisconsin Department of Transportation Secretary Kristina Boardman in a WisDOT press release. “As the Charger locomotives entered mid-life stage, it became clear to WisDOT and our state partners that upgrades were needed to ensure safety and reliability on the popular Hiawatha train, between Chicago and Milwaukee, and a host of other routes.” 

The $140 million grant was announced on Aug. 14 as one of the FRA's National Railroad Partnership Program (NRPP) awards. The FRA dedicated $5.3 billion in federal grant funds for new Amtrak trainsets, the overhauling of Amtrak locomotives and improvements to grade crossings throughout the country.