Metro-North Railroad Unveils New Wrapped Locomotive from Heritage Series

New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (NYMTA) Metro-North Railroad has unveiled a sixth locomotive as part of its Heritage Series with a special design that was used until 1954 along the then New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad, usually referred to as the New Haven Railroad. The Heritage Series was launched in May 2023 to celebrate Metro-North’s 40 years of public service and honor the railroads that independently operated commuter rail services along the lines that now mainly make up Metro-North: the Hudson Line, Harlem Line, and New Haven Line.

Craft workers at Metro-North’s North White Plains, Harmon, Stamford, and New Haven shops restored Genesis-model dual-mode P32AC-DM locomotive No. 222 over the course of several months and wrapped the train in an olive green and a dandelion yellow vinyl, the paint scheme employed on New Haven Railroad locomotives until 1954.

“The Heritage Series honors and educates Metro-North customers about the railroad’s rich history,” said Metro-North Railroad President Catherine Rinaldi. “We hope our customers enjoy the addition of the vintage colors of the then New Haven Railroad and that the new locomotive sparks some curiosity about the predecessor railroads that paved the way for Metro-North.” 

The fifth commemorative locomotive paid tribute to the Metro-North workforce, featuring 2,000 pictures of past and present employees. The fourth commemorative locomotive paid tribute to Penn Central, the 1968 merger of the New York Central and Pennsylvania Railroads, which also absorbed the New Haven Railroad in 1969. The third rebranded locomotive paid tribute to New York Central, the predecessor railroad that operated the Hudson and Harlem lines. The second rebranded locomotive paid tribute to Conrail, the railroad which is Metro-North’s immediate predecessor. The first rebrand paid homage to Metro-North’s original design. Locomotive No. 208.

All six wrapped locomotives are in service on Metro-North’s Hudson, Harlem, and New Haven Lines and can be seen on any train that normally operates with the railroad’s dual-mode diesel/electric locomotives.