RAIL ATLASby Train LifeSouthern California’s first commuter locomotive
Metrolink connects communities across Southern California. Its first locomotives, the F59PH, use a diesel engine to make electricity for wheel motors. Double-deck coaches give passengers two levels to sit on.
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An onboard diesel engine provides power. Some locomotives use a gearbox; others generate electricity for traction motors.
The long hood usually covers a diesel engine and its supporting equipment. Passenger railcars can carry their engines below the floor.
The F59PH is a 3,000 horsepower, four-axle diesel-electric commuter locomotive built by EMD. Metrolink bought 23 of them for its 1992 launch, numbered 851–873, and ran them with double-deck coaches. The original F59PH was designed for 83 mph; the later F59PHI could reach 110 mph. Metrolink retired its F59PH fleet as newer F125 locomotives arrived, and No. 851 is now preserved at a museum.
The driver controls the locomotive from this cab. The engine hood is not a passenger area.
Separate locomotives haul coaches or wagons. A self-propelled railcar combines propulsion and passenger accommodation.
Cooling fans help remove engine heat. Exhaust gases leave through an exhaust outlet.
These are diesel engine systems, not electric pantographs. Fan positions and sizes in the model are representative.
Many diesels generate electricity onboard to run traction motors. Other types use mechanical or hydraulic transmissions.
Diesel-electric does not mean the locomotive needs overhead wires. Its diesel engine drives the generator.
The locomotive carries diesel fuel onboard. Fuel feeds the engine, which produces the power needed to move.
The tank shown is a simplified storage zone. Passenger railcars and different locomotive types arrange their tanks differently.
A diesel engine supplies the power.
Some diesel trains send power through a gearbox or hydraulic transmission. Diesel-electric trains first make electricity for wheel motors. Read this train’s story above for its arrangement; not every diesel works the same way.
1992 — Metrolink launch.
Catalogue milestone: 1992–1993 · 23 units for Metrolink, numbered 851–873. A delivery, a first test and a first passenger trip are different events. Individual vehicles can be built in different years.
Southern California, in the United States.
Metrolink used the F59PH from its 1992 launch for regional passenger journeys. This is a locomotive pulling coaches, rather than a self-contained bullet-train set.
Retired from Metrolink’s regular service.
Newer F125 locomotives replaced the F59PH fleet around 2020. Some units went to other railways, and No. 851, Metrolink’s first locomotive, is preserved at a museum.
Fleet-status check: 2026-09-17. Consult the operator for departures.We leave gaps visible instead of guessing. The original catalogue and our learning model do not establish every real-world specification.
The catalogue connects this train with Southern California, United States. That may be where it worked, rather than the factory that built it.
A train uses different materials for different jobs: metals for strength, glass for windows and insulating materials around wires. Paint colour cannot tell us whether the body underneath is steel or aluminium.
Follow these steps, then find the matching sections in the model above.
Energy travels in the fuel tank.
Burning fuel makes the engine turn.
The engine makes electricity for wheel motors.
Grip between wheels and rails moves the train.
Look underneath: wheelsets support the train and carry the forces used to accelerate and brake. The model simplifies the real running gear.
Design maximum · 83 mph. A maximum speed describes particular conditions; station stops, curves, signals and track limits make an actual journey slower.
A fast train is a whole system: vehicle, track, electricity or fuel, brakes, signalling and trained people. A race in the game is a simplified comparison.
Yes! A diesel-electric locomotive uses a diesel engine to turn a generator. That makes electricity for motors at the wheels. It carries its energy as fuel, so it does not need overhead power wires.
No steering wheel is needed to choose a direction. The rails guide the wheelsets. At a junction, movable sections of rail called points or switches guide the train onto another track. The driver controls speed and braking.
A moving train has energy. Brakes must remove that energy to slow it down. A heavy train travelling fast needs room to stop, so railway signals help keep trains safely separated.
Compare how they look, what they carry and where their power comes from.
A frame holding wheelsets beneath a vehicle. It can turn relative to the body to help the train follow curves.
The distance between the inside faces of the two running rails. Narrow gauge means closer rails; loading gauge describes the space a train may occupy.
A folding roof collector that stays in contact with an overhead power wire.
The force used to pull or propel the train. Grip between wheels and rails limits how much force can be used.
A train with propulsion equipment within its passenger vehicles, operated together from one cab.
A powered vehicle whose main job is to move other railway vehicles.
Moving and arranging vehicles in a yard, often at low speed.
The colours, stripes, logos and other markings painted or applied to a train.
The permitted speed for passenger or freight operation on a suitable section. It is not the journey average.
A speed achieved on a particular test or record attempt, sometimes with special equipment and conditions.
A vehicle coupled to a steam locomotive to carry extra water and fuel. A tank engine carries water on the locomotive itself.
An early vehicle built to develop and test a design before a production fleet.
Follow the operator, builder and museum references below for more detail. Links beside an answer show which source supports that answer.
Edition 2026-09-27. Catalogue background is carried forward from the original collection; it is not a new independent verification. Engineering explanations describe principles. Portraits and 3D models are illustrations, with simplified parts and proportions. This is an independent learning guide, not an operator’s timetable.
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