As part of a new program involving expenditures of up to $10.9 billion by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to buy more than 2,000 rail cars, it was announced on June 23 that the Metro-North Railroad will receive 156 new M-9A rail cars from the first round of purchasing.
The MTA’s Finance Committee has approved an order for 316 of the new M-9A cars to be built in New York state by Alstom Transportation under a $2.3 billion contract that also allows options for an additional 242 cars. Alstom operates plants in Hornell and Plattsburgh. In addition to the 156 cars to be built for Metro-North, 160 cars will be allocated to the Long Island Rail Road.
Metro-North Railroad President Justin Vonashek said, “I’m excited for our customers to experience even more reliable service when the M-9A railcars join our fleet. We are committed to providing the best customer experience every day on every ride on Metro-North.”
At a June 23 MTA Board of Directors committee meeting on the commuter railroads, Vonashek reported that Metro-North set a record for ridership last month with 6.17 million people using the Hudson, Harlem or New Haven lines. A daily ridership record was set on Monday, May 20, with 255,648 riders using Metro-North trains.
Alstrom is due to deliver test cars for the LIRR in 2029 with all of the cars in the first order due to be delivered to both railroads by 2032. The M-9A cars will be used to replace M-3 cars that were built by the Budd Company beginning in about 1982.
The M-9A cars will feature enhanced windows, USB charging ports and accessibility improvements including automatic doors for bathrooms.
According to MTA Chief of Rolling Stock Program Tim Mulligan, “The MTA is the biggest rail car purchaser in North America, and we are using innovative methods to bring down costs and delivery time. By building on the reliable design of previous cars, we were able to work with the contractor to get things done better, faster, and cheaper.”
Alstom’s has four manufacturing plants in Hornell, which combined are the largest passenger rail manufacturing facility in North America. There have been two recent expansions of the facility, which has produced more than 8,000 new or refurbished rail vehicles to customers across North America, including 1,000 subway cars for New York City.
Gov. Kathy Hochul at the June opening of a $75 million addition, said, “Alstom’s $75 million expansion is proof that manufacturing is back in the Southern Tier. We are … rebuilding Upstate, making New York the place where things get made and made well.”
