The first batch (414-435) of these C420s were purchased (the first 16 from Alco, the rest from MLW) as part of the post-merger dieselisation of the TdM & LT&L. The second batch (469-482) were acquired second-hand when the PV&T bought the D&H in 1984, and a third batch started trickling in as various Alco-powered shortlines started retiring their no-​longer-​even-​close-​to-​EPA-​conformant historic locomotives.

All of these centuries remain in service.

In the 2020s, they started to be rebuilt at ILW with modern internals and a Tier 4f prime mover (A Cummins QSK50 diesel). This program was slowed by the China Tunnel Project, but by the mid 2020s half of them had been remanufactured.