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During a recent nine-day test, Providence & Worcester Railroad Co. (PWRR) found National Railway Equipment Co.’s (NREC) three-engine N-ViroMotive™ switcher helped reduce fuel consumption about 64 percent compared with a GP40-2 locomotive.

The 545-mile regional conducted the test last month in Worcester, Mass., operating the 2,100-horsepower generator-set or “GenSet” locomotive for six to seven hours daily. PWRR, which serves Rhode Island, New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts, operates two intermodal yards in Worcester.

The N-ViroMotive switcher is designed to reduce certain air emissions about 80 percent, improve tractive effort between 50 percent and 65 percent, and cut fuel usage between 35 percent and 50 percent compared with a conventional switcher. The GenSet locomotive also features microprocessor-based electronic controls and modularized mechanical platforms to decrease maintenance requirements.

NREC operates 10 locomotive, diesel engine and related parts manufacturing facilities in the United States and Canada.