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3 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. GE Dash 8-40BW BNSF 566: Matthew J. Brown User:Morven· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 2. BNSF 519-GE B40-8W (32718458517) (cropped): Jim Hamilton· CC BY 2.0
- 3. BNSF 540 - GE B-40-8W (Dash 8) in Oregon: Tequask· CC BY-SA 4.0
what is it?
The GE Dash 8-40BW, or B40-8W, is a four-axle diesel locomotive built by GE Transportation for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (ATSF) between 1990 and 1992. It is part of the GE Dash 8 Series of freight locomotives. The locomotive model designation is interpreted as follows: B (B type truck arrangement, 2 axles per truck) 40 (4000 horsepower) -8 (the generation when it was designed, in this case meaning the late 1980s) W (Widecab).
who runs it
base stats
Bars compare against all trains: 600 km/h (maglev), 1,700 seats; power, weight and number built on a log scale up to 20 MW, 1,000 t and 20,000 built.
fun facts
- First built 36 years ago, in 1990.
- 3 MW is about 35 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
- Weighs about as much as 21 African elephants (~6 t each).
- 20.1 m long: about 4 cars parked nose to tail.
diesel locomotive: A diesel engine on board drives the wheels, usually through a generator (diesel-electric).
spec sheet
- built
- 1990–1992
- status
- in service
- number built
- 84
- kind
- Diesel-electric
- traction
- diesel
- origin
- 🇺🇸 United States
- builders
- GE Transportation, General Electric
- operators
- Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
- top speed
- 113 km/h
- power
- 3 MW
- gauge
- 1,435 mm standard gauge
- wheel arrangement
- B-B
- length
- 20.1 m
- weight
- 127 t
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q5513270, Wikipedia: GE Dash 8-40BW (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.