Even without yellow paint, the U50C would have been immediately recognizable as Union Pacific power. From its unique 4-12-2 to the Big Boy to its 8500 horsepower gas turbine, no other railroad had such a penchant for huge, larger-than-life locomotives. So it seemed only natural that in 1963, UP Superintendent of Motive Power David Neuhart approached EMD, Alco and GE about building a 5,000 horsepower diesel - twice the horsepower of a typical road diesel of the time. A key impetus was a U.P. study that had indicated diesel maintenance costs were about the same regardless of horsepower.