# EMD GP30

The EMD GP30 is a 2,250 hp (1,680 kW) four-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division of La Grange, Illinois between July 1961 and November 1963. A total of 948 units were built for railroads in the United States and Canada (2 only), including 40 cabless B units for the Union Pacific Railroad.
It was the first so-called "second generation" EMD diesel locomotive, and was produced in response to increased competition by a new entrant, General Electric's U25B, which was released roughly at the same time as the GP30. The GP30 is easily recognizable due to its high profile and stepped cab roof, unique among American locomotives. A number are still in service today in original or rebuilt form.

## History
### Development

The GP30 was conceived out of the necessity of matching new competitor GE's U25B. The U25B offered 2,500 hp (1,860 kW) while EMD's GP20 and its 567D2 prime mover was only rated at 2,000 hp (1,490 kW). The U25B also featured a sealed, airtight long hood with a single inertial air intake for electrical cooling, with a pressurized cooling system which kept dust out of the engine and equipment area. Finally, the entire GE design was optimized for ease of access and maintenance. The U25B demonstrators were receiving much praise—and orders—from the railroads that tested them. Meanwhile, ALCO had been producing the 2,400 hp (1,800 kW) RS-27 since 1959, though it had not sold well.
EMD's engineering department pushed their DC traction system for an extra 250 hp (186 kW). The 2,250 hp (1,680 kW) wasn't quite equivalent to the GE and ALCO offerings, but EMD hoped the railroads' familiarity with EMD equipment would improve their chances. The locomotive in which the 16 cylinder, 567D3 would be fitted, was improved along the lines of the U25B; sealed long hood, central air intake, and engineered for easier maintenance access. The frame and trucks of the GP20 were carried across; the extra equipment for the centralized air system required more space behind the cab, and since the locomotive was not going to be lengthened, extra space was achieved vertically by raising the height of the locomotive, giving room for the central air system, turbocharger and electrical cabinet all behind the cab. This extra height behind the cab meant that the body style used for previous GP units was not suitable.
Since EMD wanted the new locomotive to be visibly modern and updated, they turned to the GM Automotive Styling Center at Troy, Michigan for help. The automobile stylists created the GP30's trademark "hump" and cab roof profile. The hump-like bulge started at the front of the cab and enveloped the air intakes for the central air system and the dynamic brake blister. Units ordered without dynamic brakes were the same shape, but lacked the intakes to cool the dynamic brake resistor grids.
A high short hood could be ordered, but only holdouts Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway received such units. EMD originally planned to name the locomotive the GP22, but EMD's marketing department decided to leapfrog GE's numbering to make the new locomotive seem more advanced. Marketing literature claimed 30 distinct improvements from the GP20 and that this was the reason for the number.

### Sales and in service

The GP30 successfully countered the GE threat and kept EMD in the dominant position in the North American diesel market. While losing a little power to the GE and ALCO competition, the solidity and reliability of the GP30—and the familiarity of railroad mechanical departments with EMD products—ultimately won many more orders for EMD. 948 were sold, in comparison to 476 U25Bs. In addition, the GP30 was only sold until the end of 1963, while the U25B was available until 1966.
Most major railroads ordered GP30s, and many smaller ones did too. The largest orders were from the SOU (120), UP (111), ATSF (85), and the B&O (77).
The sole purchaser of B units (by the mid-1960s generally an outdated concept) was the UP, who kept the practice of running its locomotives in matched sets much longer than others. Thirteen of those GP30B units were fitted with steam generators for heating passenger trains, the only GP30s to receive them. Prior to Amtrak, UP would use a GP30 and two boiler equipped GP30Bs on passenger trains when no E8s or E9s were available.
Some units for the GM&O, MILW and SOO were built using trucks from ALCO trade-ins and therefore ride on AAR type B trucks instead of the EMD standard Blomberg Bs. An indisputable tribute to the quality of the GP30 design is the fact that a good number are still in service as of 2015, which is a service lifespan of over 50 years and well in excess of the design life of 25–30 years for the average diesel locomotive. Furthermore, when life-expired, some railroads chose to give them major rebuilds instead of scrapping them.

## Original buyers
### Cab-equipped 'A' units

| Railroad | Quantity | Road numbers | Notes |
| Electro Motive Division (demonstrator) | 2 | 5629 | to Union Pacific Railroad 875 |
| Electro Motive Division (demonstrator) | 2 | 5639 | to Seaboard Air Line Railroad 534, to Seaboard Coast Line Railroad 1343 |
| Alaska Railroad | 1 | 2000 | |
| Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway | 85 | 1200–1284 | Renumbered 3200–3284. Rebuilt versions called GP30u**upgraded at Cleburne, Texas shops. |
| Atlantic Coast Line Railroad | 9 | 900–908 | to Seaboard Coast Line Railroad 1300–1308 |
| Baltimore and Ohio Railroad | 77 | 6900–6976 | |
| Chesapeake and Ohio Railway | 48 | 3000–3047 | |
| Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad | 38 | 940–977 | to Burlington Northern Railroad 2217–2254 |
| Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad | 3 | 239–241 | |
| Chicago Great Western Railway | 8 | 201–208 | to Chicago & North Western Railway 802–809 |
| Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad | 16 | 340–355 | AAR type B trucks. Renumbered 1000–1015 |
| Chicago and North Western Railway | 14 | 810–832 | |
| Canadian Pacific Railway | 2 | 8200–8201 | Built by General Motors Diesel (GMD) in London, Ontario. Renumbered 5000–5001 |
| Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad | 28 | 3001–3028 | |
| Great Northern Railway | 17 | 3000–3016 | to Burlington Northern Railroad 2200–2216 |
| Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad | 31 | 500–530 | AAR type B trucks |
| Kansas City Southern Railway | 20 | 100–119 | |
| Louisville and Nashville Railroad | 58 | 1000–1057 | |
| New York Central Railroad | 10 | 6115–6124 | to Penn Central 2188–2197, to Conrail same numbers |
| New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad | 10 | 900–909 | to Norfolk and Western 2900-2909 |
| Norfolk and Western Railway | 44 | 522–565 | High short hood, operated long hood-forward |
| Pennsylvania Railroad | 52 | 2200–2251 | 2250-2251 renumbered to Penn Central then Conrail 2198–2199, 2200–2249 to Penn Central then Conrail same numbers |
| Phelps Dodge Corporation | 9 | 24–32 | New Cornelia Branch mine |
| Reading Railroad | 20 | 5501–5520 | renumbered 3600–3619; to Conrail 2168-2187 |
| Seaboard Air Line Railroad | 34 | 500–533 | to Seaboard Coast Line Railroad 1309–1342 |
| Soo Line Railroad | 22 | 700–721 | AAR type B trucks. Eighteen to Wisconsin Central Limited, same numbers |
| Southern Pacific Railroad | 8 | 7400–7407 | |
| Southern Railway | 120 | 2525–2644 | High short hood |
| St. Louis Southwestern Railway | 10 | 750–759 | |
| Toledo, Peoria and Western Railway | 1 | 700 | To ATSF as 3285. |
| Union Pacific Railroad | 111 | 700–735, 800–874 | |
| Totals | 908 | | |

### Cabless booster 'B' units

| Railroad | Quantity | Road numbers | Notes |
| Union Pacific Railroad | 40 | 700B–739B | Thirteen units, 727B-739B, fitted with steam generators |
| Totals | 40 | | |

## Rebuilds

The Burlington Northern Railroad was the most extensive user of rebuilt GP30s. Finding a need for modernized units of lower power, it sent GP30s—-both its own and units purchased from other railroads-—to be rebuilt to the specifications of the later GP39. Seventy units were sent to EMD, 65 to Morrison Knudsen (now Washington Group International) and 25 to VMV for rebuilding, and the rebuilds are known as GP39E, GP39M, and GP39V respectively. The changes included new generators, Dash-2 modular electronic control systems and 567D3 engines upgraded with EMD 645-series power assemblies, rated at 2,300 hp (1,720 kW) and designated 12-645D3. Some of these units received new EMD spartan cabs. These units are still in service on locals and smaller lines throughout the BNSF Railway system.
The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (ATSF) had previously performed a similar upgrade in its own Cleburne, Texas shops, stripping the locomotives down to bare metal and rebuilding with new equipment. The 567D3 engines were upgraded to a 2500-horsepower rating by the use of 645-series power assemblies. The generators and traction motors were upgraded and control and electrical equipment was replaced. The trucks received Hyatt roller bearings and single-shoe brake systems. Rooftop air conditioners and new horns were added. The locomotives were repainted in the blue and yellow Yellowbonnet scheme, and designated GP30u (for upgraded). 78 of these survived until the BNSF merger, and were eventually all sold off. In 2016, BNSF traded Larry's Truck and Electric (LTEX) 26 GP38s for 24 of the Ex-ATSF GP30u's for their GP39-3 rebuild program. The Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad acquired a total of 6 of the former BNSF/ATSF GP30u's from LTEX and designates them as GP39RN locomotives.
The Soo Line Railroad rebuilt three GP30s with CAT 3516 engines rated at 2,000 horsepower (1.49 MW). These were designated GP30C.
The Illinois Central Gulf Railroad rebuilt two GP30s in the early 1980s. These units were designated GP26. As of 2018, the units remain in service on the Cimarron Valley Railroad.
The Chessie System rebuilt its GP30 units into GP30Ms, adding newer components, new traction motors and reducing their power to 2000 hp. They lasted with CSX into the mid-to-late 1990s, long after Seaboard System GP30s had been sold, retired and scrapped, or turned into road slugs.

## Preservation

Many GP30s have been preserved by a variety of museums, societies and tourist railways. All preserved examples are cab units, as the cabless booster units have been scrapped. A number of these preserved locomotives are in operational condition. The following is a list of preserved GP30s in North America.
GP30s in Preservation :
| Original Railroad | Original Road Number | Preserved Railroad | Preserved Road Number | Preservation Organization | Location | Status | Notes |
| Baltimore & Ohio | 6944 | Baltimore & Ohio | 6944 | B&O Railroad Museum | Baltimore, Maryland | Operable | |
| Chesapeake & Ohio | 4625 | Branson Scenic Railway | 99 | Branson Scenic Railway | Branson, Missouri | Operating | South end locomotive |
| Canadian Pacific | 5000 | Canadian Pacific | 5000 | Alberta Railway Museum | Edmonton, Alberta | Preserved | One of only two GP30s built in Canada |
| Pennsylvania Railroad | 2233 | Conrail | 2233 | Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania | Strasburg, Pennsylvania | Static Display | Formerly operated on the West Shore Railroad in Lewisburg, PA between the late 1980s and early 2000s and was repainted in its original PRR colors during that time. |
| Cotton Belt | 5006 | Cotton Belt | 5006 | Arkansas Railroad Museum | Pine Bluff, Arkansas | Preserved | |
| Denver & Rio Grande Western | 3006 | Denver & Rio Grande Western | 3006 | Forney Transportation Museum | Denver, Colorado | Preserved | |
| Denver & Rio Grande Western | 3011 | Denver & Rio Grande Western | 3011 | Colorado Railroad Museum | Golden, Colorado | Preserved | |
| Pennsylvania Railroad | 2250 | New Hope & Ivyland | 2198 | New Hope & Ivyland | New Hope, Pennsylvania | Operating | Hauls daily tourist trains |
| Nickel Plate Road | 900 | Nickel Plate Road | 900 | Mad River & NKP Railroad Museum | Bellevue, Ohio | Preserved | |
| Nickel Plate Road | 901 | Nickel Plate Road | 901 | Lebanon Mason Monroe Railroad | Cincinnati, Ohio | Operating | |
| Nickel Plate Road | 902 | Nickel Plate Road | 902 | Cincinnati Scenic Railway | Cincinnati, Ohio | Operating | |
| Norfolk & Western | 522 | Norfolk & Western | 522 | Roanoke Chapter of the NRHS | Roanoke, Virginia | Operable | |
| Reading | 5513 | Reading | 5513 | Reading Company Technical & Historical Society | Hamburg, Pennsylvania | Under Repair | The first production GP30. Operational in the 1980s and 1990s and is currently being repaired. |
| Santa Fe | 1235 | RBMN | 2535 | Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad | Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania | Operating | Only preserved GP30u. Currently in active service at the Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway. |
| Santa Fe | 1269 | GSMR | 2467 | Great Smoky Mountains Railroad | Bryson City, North Carolina | Operating | Only preserved GP30-3. |
| Soo Line | 700 | Soo Line | 700 | Lake Superior Railroad Museum | Duluth, Minnesota | Operating | Restored for use on their North Shore Scenic Railroad. |
| Soo Line | 703 | Soo Line | 703 | Colfax Railroad Museum | Colfax, Wisconsin | Preserved | |
| Southern | 2594 | Southern | 2594 | Southeastern Railway Museum | Duluth, Georgia | Operable | Currently leased to the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum. |
| Southern | 2601 | Southern | 2601 | North Carolina Transportation Museum | Spencer, North Carolina | Operable | |
| Union Pacific | 844 | Union Pacific | 844 | Nevada State Railroad Museum Boulder City | Boulder City, Nevada | Operating | Famously the engine that necessitated the renumbering of UP steam engine #844 to #8444 from 1962 to its retirement in 1989. |
| Louisville and Nashville | 1030 | Waldens Ridge Railroad | 1030 | Southern Appalachia Railway Museum | Knoxville, Tennessee | Operating | |
| Southern | 2561 | Waldens Ridge Railroad | 2561 | Southern Appalachia Railway Museum | Knoxville, Tennessee | Preserved | |
| Southern | 2608 | Waldens Ridge Railroad | 2608 | Southern Appalachia Railway Museum | Knoxville, Tennessee | Preserved | |
| Pennsylvania Railroad | 2249 | Western Maryland Scenic | 501 | Western Maryland Scenic | Cumberland, Maryland | Operating | |
| Reading Company | 5507 | Western Maryland Scenic | 502 | Western Maryland Scenic | Cumberland, Maryland | Stored | |
| Soo Line | 715 | Wisconsin Central | 715 | National Railroad Museum | Green Bay, Wisconsin | On Display | |
| Baltimore & Ohio | 6955 | Baltimore & Ohio | 6955 | Cincinnati Scenic Railway | Cincinnati, Ohio | Undergoing Restoration | Successfully acquired and undergoing mechanical restoration. See facebook page for details. |