USA: Philadelphia’s SEPTA has reached a US$8·58m agreement to buy 24 second-hand commuter rail coaches from Greater Montréal regional transport authority Exo.
The order announced on April 1 is being paid from using nearly $220m of emergency funding which was allocated by Pennsylvania’s Governor Josh Shapiro in November 2025 to support urgent safety upgrades and infrastructure improvements.
Capacity crunch
Following a number of fires, in October 2025 the Federal Railroad Authority ordered the inspection and repair of SEPTA’s Silverliner IV electric multiple-unit cars which are 50 years old and form two-thirds of its Regional Rail fleet. This led to service cancellations and reduced capacity for several months.
The repairs have now mostly been completed, but SEPTA has committed to an enhanced maintenance programme pending the procurement of a replacement fleet.
In an effort to avoid further disruption, SEPTA contracted other North American operators to explore short-term options to lease or purchase used vehicles. This has included leasing 10 coaches from Maryland’s MARC, which are now in service.
Exo coaches
The 24 Exo single-deck Comet coaches manufactured by Bombardier in the late 1980s will operate with SEPTA’s ACS-64 electric locomotives, following modifications to the doors and other systems.
‘These additional rail cars will help us enhance reliability and expand capacity for our customers while we work toward replacing our aging Regional Rail fleet’, explained SEPTA General Manager Scott A Sauer on April 1.
