USA: Six urban and commuter rail rolling stock renewal projects have been awarded Federal Transit Administration grants totalling $703m.
| Rail Vehicle Replacement Programme grants | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Agency |
Location |
Grant |
Project |
|
Sacramento RTD |
Sacramento, California |
$45·1m |
Purchase of 16 Siemens Mobility low-floor LRVs to replace older vehicles, taking the total order to 44 LRVs under a framework contract for up to 76 |
|
South Florida RTA |
Miami, Florida |
$71·7m |
Towards a $179·2m programme to order locos and coaches to replace 24 rail vehicles, or 32% of the Tri Rail commuter fleet |
|
Chicago Transit Authority |
Chicago, Illinois |
$200m |
Purchase of up to 300 metro cars designated the 9000 Series to replace vehicles from the 1980s |
|
Bi-State Development Agency |
St Louis, Missouri |
$196·3m |
Siemens Mobility to supply up to 48 LRVs to replace MetroLink cars that have already exceeded their projected 25 years service lives |
|
Greater Cleveland RTA |
Cleveland, Ohio |
$130m |
Towards $393m purchase of 60 Siemens Mobility S200 high floor LRVs able to operate across the light rail routes and Red Line metro, eliminating the need for separate fleets |
|
Utah Transit Authority |
Salt Lake City, Utah |
$60m |
Purchase of 20 LRVs to replace older cars, improving reliability and safety and ‘significantly’ improving accessibility by reducing the need for boarding devices |
FTA received funding requests worth more than $3·5bn for the FY2022-23 grants, which are the first to be awarded under a $1·5bn Rail Vehicle Replacement Programme funded under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
FTA said older vehicles contribute to delays and increased costs, and lack modern passenger information and accessibility features.
‘One-third of our nation’s subway and commuter rail vehicles are more than 25 years old’, said FTA Administrator Nuria Fernandez on May 5. ‘This programme focuses on transit agencies that lack the funding they need to address overdue railcar replacements.’
