In Baltimore, the B&O operated the Howard Street Tunnel with a main line that had a northbound incline of nearly 1 percent. To reduce smoke and steam in the tunnel, it was the first electrified main line in the US when it was opened in 1895. The powerhouse, electric distribution system and the locomotives were all built by General Electric. The three class LE-1 locomotives were each combined of two halves with two axles each. Each axle had its own traction motor with a total power of 1,450 hp. The wheel had a diameter of 62 inches or 1,575 mm.

Southbound trains just rolled through the tunnel with their regulator closed. Trains running northbound were hauled by an electric locomotive, with the steam locomotive also idling. On the incline, freight trains of 2,000 tons could be hauled with 12 mph. Two of the three were scrapped in 1903 after the more powerful LE-2 had been introduced. No. 2 was stored and was last seen at the Fair of the Iron Horse an Chicago in 1927. There it was numbered 1 to represent the first electric locomotive of the B&O.