Montreal Locomotive Works - Purchase By Bombardier

Purchase By Bombardier

In 1975, the emerging Quebec-based industrial conglomerate Bombardier purchased a majority stake in MLW. Under Bombardier, the MLW organization continued to provide innovative locomotive design into the early 1980s, and also benefited from its geographic location. During the 1970s, Bombardier began to enter the railway passenger car business with domestic orders for commuter and subway systems. Based on a prototype trainset constructed in the mid-1970s, in 1980 MLW began production of a fleet of high-speed diesel-powered passenger locomotives for the LRC (Light, Rapid, Comfortable) passenger trains being built for the newly-created federal Crown corporation Via Rail. Similar equipment was also used briefly by Amtrak. The last of the locomotives were retired from service in 2005, although the pendular-suspension coaches continue to form the backbone of Via's intercity corridor fleet.

By now fully merged into Bombardier, the MLW plant and design bureau also received a spurt of contracts from government-owned CN for the newly-designed HR (High Reliability) line of freight locomotives which incorporated the Canadian safety cab or a full-width carbody; namely the 4-axle HR-412 (similar to the M-420) and the full-width carbody 6-axle HR-616.

The HR-616 incorporated another unique design with the "Draper Taper", named for the designer at CN, allowing for rear visibility from the cab. These locomotive designs were intended to replace aging MLW and GMD units CN had purchased during the late 1960s and early 1970s, although only a token combined order of 30 units were built. These locomotives were considered a failure as they lasted only as long as the units which they were designed to replace (mid-1990s) and were considered to be mechanically and electrically unreliable, a common complaint with several ALCO/MLW designs.

In a 1985 corporate reorganization, Bombardier removed itself from manufacturing locomotives and concentrated on producing passenger train rolling stock, as well as aircraft (following the 1986 acquisition of the federal government Crown corporation Canadair), in addition to its recreational products.

The dormant MLW plant was sold to General Electric in 1988 and ironically was used by GE during a late 1980s programme of rebuilding some of its earlier "Universal series" road switchers - the locomotives which had initially driven ALCO out of the locomotive business in the United States in 1969.

GE closed the MLW manufacturing plant in 1993. The GE half of the plant was destroyed by fire in 2001 while the other half of the plant remained in use by the National Research Council of Canada.

In 2004, the rest of the enormous complex was demolished. The nearby GE-Camco-Westinghouse plant, which is the only Canadian manufacturer of home appliances, bought half of the property to build its new shipping warehouse and a new part store. Most of the vacant lot and pile of rubble from the former MLW plant can still be seen at the corner of Dickson Street and Souligny Avenue.

Bombardier has since returned to the locomotive manufacturing business, albeit using largely European or European-influenced passenger locomotive designs that retain none of the ALCO/MLW heritage. Bombardier's North American rail manufacturing facilities are located in La Pocatière, Quebec; Plattsburgh, New York and Thunder Bay, Ontario.