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The California Department of Transportation’s (Caltrans) intercity passenger-rail program will be the first in the nation to start converting a fleet of locomotives to emission-control standards exceeding current U.S. Environmental Projection Agency (EPA) requirements, Caltrans officials said in a prepared statement.

Caltrans will use $190 million in federal stimulus funds to modernize Amtrak California locomotives, renovate existing cars and purchase new equipment by 2015, officials said. The retrofitted locomotives will operate on the San Joaquin and Capitol Corridor routes.

The project calls for retrofitting 3,200-horsepower locomotive engines with emission-control equipment. The new EPA 710 EOC Repower engine upgrade includes an automatic engine start/stop system designed to reduce fuel and oil usage by eliminating idling time and emissions.

Smog-forming emissions will be reduced by 43 percent, hydrocarbon emissions will be cut by 84 percent and diesel particulate emissions will be trimmed by 78 percent, Caltrans officials said.