Transit Officials Unveil Test Models of New High-Tech Subway Cars
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Transit officials yesterday unveiled a test model of the newest subway car that will debut on the system’s lettered lines late next year.
Another set of test cars, which were supposed to be in the city four months ago, were scheduled to arrive late last night, ending a trying period for transit officials who had to deal with several setbacks at French manufacturer Alstom Transportation Incorporated, a first-time subway car producer.
Damaged car shells, windows that did not seal properly, and a shortage of parts hindered the company’s ability to produce 400 of the 660 R160 subway cars awarded by New York City Transit as part of a $1.1 billion contract.
“It’s about time,” the president of New York City Transit, Lawrence Reuter, said of the scheduled arrival. “We think they are through with a lot of the birthing pains.”
Three test cars were to arrive last night from Alstom’s plant in Hornell, N.Y., with the remaining seven test cars scheduled to arrive December 6.
Mr. Reuter said it was unlikely financial penalties would be assessed unless Alstom misses its deadline to produce the bulk of its contract by late 2006. Mr. Reuter said he expects the company to make that deadline.
The remainder of the contract – 260 cars – was awarded to Kawasaki Rail Car Incorporated, which delivered its prototype on time in late July. That car was on display at the Hoyt-Schermerhorn Street station yesterday afternoon.
The prototype is nearly identical to the cars now in use on the L line. And like the L train, known as the R143, the R160 will eventually be fitted with computer software that will allow it to operate without an on-board driver under a system known as Communications Based Train Control.
When the R160 trains make their appearance late next year on the N and Q lines, however, the most noticeable change will be in the realm of customer service.
After two years of market re search and with the help of design consultants, the electronic map that lays out an entire line’s stops and uses a blinking light to tell riders the train’s location has been significantly overhauled.
Remedying a major design flaw, the new maps will be able to be used interchangeably on any subway line due to the addition of small video screens that can display each line’s symbol.
The small screens may eventually do much more. Each screen can hold up to 10 60-second video messages that may offer New York City Transit an added revenue stream in the form of commercials, though that decision has not been finalized, a manager for the transit authority, David Follins, said.
Transit officials also made the maps bigger and enlarged the digital lettering. Now the sign not only tells riders which stop is next but can communicate how many stops there are between a train’s location and any given station on the line. The sign will also display a “will not stop” message by stations a train will skip, giving riders more time to adjust their travel plans.
Like the newer car models introduced in recent years on the Lexington Avenue line, the no. 2, and the L line, the R160 is lighter, stronger, and quieter than older trains, using an air brake suspension instead of mechanical springs.
“If you ride in this car, it’s like an airplane,” New York City Transit’s assistant chief mechanical officer, Gene Sansone, said of the R160 yesterday.
Another similarity to the newer trains is that the R160 captures heat emitted from its brakes and converts it into electricity it then feeds into the electrified third rail.