Zero Emission Hydrogen Locomotive Pilot – West Sacramento

[davesnow]

Zero Emission Hydrogen Locomotive Pilot – West Sacramento - Valley Vision - Sacramento

The new hydrogen fuel cell locomotives at the Port of West Sacramento will demonstrate how hydrogen-fueled switching locomotives improve air quality, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and increase the quality of life for surrounding communities.

www.valleyvision.org

 

[pdkoester]

I saw this, was a little amused. Didn't see enough action when I saw it moving.

 

[Dinorius_Redundicus]

What is in the fuel cell? And what are the reactions that generate the hydrogen? The article seems to carefully avoid saying anything about those details.

 

[norfolksouthern37]

You are only supposed to focus on the zero emissions part.

 

[pdkoester]

Operational Similarities​

• Same workload: It performs the same tasks—assembling/disassembling trains, moving cars short distances within yards or industrial spurs.
• Same runtime: Operates for 8–12 hours per day, depending on yard activity, just like a diesel switcher.
• Same flexibility: It can stop and refuel wherever needed, thanks to mobile hydrogen trailers—no fixed infrastructure required.

 

[pdkoester]

You are only supposed to focus on the zero emissions part.

I actually miss the blue stinky diesel smoke on SP commuter & freight in the 70s.

 

[Forester1]

Well, I keep seeing articles that claim we have found enough hydrogen to run the country for 170,000 years, so if that is really the case, bring it on.

 

[davesnow]

I actually miss the blue stinky diesel smoke on SP commuter & freight in the 70s.

me too

 

[Dinorius_Redundicus]

You are only supposed to focus on the zero emissions part.

We can't just believe it's zero emissions unless we know how the energy is generated. It might be like calling a Tesla car "zero emissions" when its battery is charged with electricity from a fossil fuel power plant. In other words, BS.

 

[pdkoester]

We can't just believe it's zero emissions unless we know how the energy is generated. It might be like calling a Tesla car "zero emissions" when its battery is charged with electricity from a fossil fuel power plant. In other words, BS.

Somewhere, directly or indirect, the hydrogen fuel is being produced then stored onsite or trucked over (that uses fossil fuels to bring it by truck) and it isn't going to be some solar plant doing it, I am pretty sure.

 

[norfolksouthern37]

I agree with all of that, but this is just marketing, so you wont get much technical logic -

But it is zero emissions!

 

[DARTrider]

Hydrogen will never be viable as a fuel source until Green Hydrogen (generated by renewables) becomes commonplace. Hybrids will continue to be the #1 ecological option.

 

[pdkoester]

Statement	Verdict	Why
Hydrogen needs green hydrogen to be viable	Mostly true	Fossil-based hydrogen undermines its ecological value
Hybrids will remain the top ecological choice	Not true long-term	EVs are cleaner and more sustainable as grids decarbonize

 

[DARTrider]

Statement	Verdict	Why
Hydrogen needs green hydrogen to be viable	Mostly true	Fossil-based hydrogen undermines its ecological value
Hybrids will remain the top ecological choice	Not true long-term	EVs are cleaner and more sustainable as grids decarbonize

EVs are not that much cleaner, even long-term. Even with grid decarbonization you still have to mine tons of rare-earth metals in places where labor laws are slack and emissions regulations are an afterthought. Reminder that a good chunk of Lithium is mined in China and Zimbabwe, as well as extremely rare Neodymium and Praseodymium, which are also mostly mined in China. And there's no telling if China will decarbonize as the government says it will. Not to mention that with US politics being the way it is, coal is back up and renewables back down which kills the entire grid decarbonization thing, at least in the United States.

Also, EVs don't really work in heavy rail use cases. Locomotives need insane amounts of power to move tonnage, and batteries would just kill the range. I believe GE estimated 1-2 hours of continuous notch-8 running on their new FLXDrive locomotive. They work plenty fine for switching and smaller public transit systems though.

Diesel-electric locomotives are proven to only make up 1.9% of transportation-related emissions in the US, so there isn't much of a point to making zero-emission locomotives, especially with Tier 4 regulations. Emissions regulations should focus on motor vehicles and aircraft.

 

[pdkoester]

The real challenge is balancing local emissions reductions with global supply chain ethics, infrastructure readiness, and economic feasibility.

 

[Dinorius_Redundicus]

Yes, let's see the environmental life cycle analysis showing whether this loco qualifies as running on green, blue or grey hydrogen. The claim of zero emissions means nothing otherwise.