NEW YORK CITY - Progressive Railroading reported on March 13 that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) last week announced it has begun phasing into service the R211 subway cars on New York City Transit's A Line.
The cars are part of a 535-car order of the R211a model, which includes 440 cars with state-of-the-art amenities, 15 Staten Island Railway five-car trains and 20 cars with the open gangway feature, MTA officials said in a press release.
The R211 cars are a critical part of the MTA's modernization plan. They feature 58-inch-wide door openings that are 8 inches wider than standard door openings on existing cars, which is designed to speed up boarding and reduce the amount of time trains sit in stations.
"We’re investing over $6 billion in new train cars as part of the historic $55 billion MTA Capital Program, and it’s not just for aesthetics, because these new train cars enable us to run more frequent service," said MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber.
In October 2022, the MTA announced board approval to order an additional 640 R211 subway cars, bringing the total number of new subway cars to 1,175 within the next two years. This second set of new subway cars is expected to be delivered in early 2025.
The cars are being manufactured by Kawasaki Rail Car Inc. in Lincoln, Nebraska, and Yonkers, New York.
Progressive Railroading also reported that the 14-mile, $5.5 billion Interborough Express in New York City will move forward as a light-rail line, as New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced during February.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority chose light rail because it will offer the best service for the lowest cost per rider compared to conventional rail and bus rapid transit, according to the project’s planning and environmental linkages study. The project has been under consideration since Hochul announced the environmental review process would begin in January 2022.
“Moving forward with light rail for the Interborough Express means better access to jobs, education and economic opportunities for some 900,000 New Yorkers in Queens and Brooklyn,” said MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber in a press release.
The project’s $5.5 billion cost estimate is based on 2027 dollars — a possible mid-point of the construction process — to adjust for future inflation rises and align with the next MTA Capital Plan, which will be effective between 2025 and 2029, the report states.
Connecting communities
Interborough Express will connect more than a dozen under served communities in Brooklyn and Queens via an active freight-rail corridor. The service will access an existing right of way of the Bay Ridge Branch owned by MTA Long Island Rail Road and the Fremont Secondary line owned by CSX. The New York and Atlantic Railway, an Anacostia Rail Holdings Co. subsidiary, runs up to five trains per week on the line, which serves as a critical connection to Norfolk Southern Railway and Conrail service.
The new express service — which will offer transfers to 17 other subway lines and connect with LIRR — is expected to reduce travel time per trip by 30 minutes.
Projected ridership is estimated at 115,000 weekday riders, or 34.6 million annually, according to the study. The cost to develop the express line per anticipated rider is $48,600. Those dollars will go toward the reconstruction of 45 overpass bridges; rehabilitation of a 125-year-old tunnel; building of support facilities for vehicle maintenance and storage; and power distribution and ancillary facilities.
“Although the right of way already exists, this project is not so simple as laying down track and starting service,” the report states. “Substantial reconstruction will be necessary in order to make the Interborough Express possible while preserving vital freight-rail connections.”
Proposed service would operate at up to five-minute headways during peak periods and up to 10-minute headways during off-peak periods.
SAN FRANCISCO - The "Inside Track" has reported that that in June 2022, the ridership level was 9.6 million, 53% of July 2019 pre-pandemic levels while BART and Caltrain were at 38% and 26%, respectively. Currently, the F-Fisherman's Wharf line is operating daily. First cars leave in the morning at 7:00AM and the last cars leave Fisherman's Wharf at 10:00PM. The PCC cars have been sufficient for the line since it restarted in the Spring of 2021 but the Muni is starting to train operators in the operation of the ex-Milan Peter Witts. It does not look like the "suspended" E-Embarcadero line will restart anytime soon.
Muni 1059, ex SEPTA 2099, on Market Street in service!
The restoration of three vintage streetcars which was stopped by the pandemic may be starting again. These cars are (1) 1924-vintage ex-Market Street Railway 798, the last surviving streetcar built by the Market Street Railway craftsmen at the old Elkton shops; (2) New Orleans Public Service Inc Riley-Thomas-built 913, acquired from the Southern California Railway Museum many years ago and Johnstown, PA car 351, built in 1926 and acquired in the late 1980s.
San Francisco Municipal Railway Car 162, also acquired from the Southern California Railway Museum in 2003, had been restored by Muni craftsmen and was undergoing initial runs in 2014 when the driver of a flat bed semi-trailer disregarded traffic directions and smashed one end of the car. Muni chose to have the car repaired off site and the development of the contract and the actual repair work took longer than had it been done in-house. when the car came back to Muni, it was discovered that the trucks were "worn out". New Baldwin trucks were fabricated by the skilled worked at the Green Division's Special Machine Shop using the worn out trucks as a template. It is hoped to have this car in service for the Heritage Weekend in September 23-24, 2023.
Muni Breda LRV moving car 162 around Cameron Beech Carhouse in February 2023!
