Napa Valley Wine Train: First Locomotive in the Nation to Convert to Compressed Natural Gas

Eco Author | 12:48 pm | December 16, 2008 | Tours, Transportation

It is sometimes hard to think of an operation that prides itself on being historic or vintage, as innovative, but that is exactly what the Napa Valley Wine Train achieved in 2001 when it became the first locomotive in the nation to convert to compressed natural gas (CNG).

CNG is natural gas that is compressed – literally compacted – to pressures above 3,100 pounds per square inch. It remains clear, essentially odorless and smokeless, is non-corrosive and is an efficient fuel source. Sounds great, doesn’t it?

By and large, it is. Natural gas can be produced at a cost lower than gasoline or diesel. And, here is the biggie: according to the California Energy Commission, natural gas vehicles show an average reduction in ozone-forming emissions of 80 percent compared to gasoline vehicles.

In 2001, the Napa Valley Railroad and the Napa Valley Wine Train undertook the conversion of locomotive number 73 to CNG. We have continued to develop and enhance the engine, just recently installing a computer controlled fuel injection system that fires only a few of the engines 12 cylinders at a time. This result in an overall energy savings by reducing waste, and it gives the engine its distinctive sound – instead of chug, chug, chugging; the sound is more random, like popcorn popping.

“It’s a major breakthrough, because we are the really the only ones doing this. It is kind of the wave of the future – saving diesel, reducing smoke emissions,” says Napa Valley Railroad’s COO Gregg Evenson.