New M8 Rail Cars to Be Added to New Haven Line

NEW ROCHELLE, NY — Up to 94 additional new M8 rail cars will be added to the Metro-North Railroad fleet on the New Haven Line.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority made the announcement Wednesday that it approved an order for at least 60 and up to 94 new rail cars.

When put into service in three years, the new cars will allow the railroad to lengthen rush hour trains, retire its last 36 older M2 cars and be able to increase train service in the years ahead as ridership increases.

There are currently 205 M8 cars already in use on the New Haven Line and New Canaan Branch.

The cars will be enabled with positive train control when they enter service, meaning they are designed to reduce the risk of human error contributing to derailments or collisions caused when a train travels too fast into a curve, onto tracks already occupied by another train or through a misaligned switch

Existing M8 cars will be upgraded to have positive train control.

Besides having the ability to receive direct current between Pelham and Grand Central Terminal, the cars can run on two types of alternating current from overhead wires.

Inside, each row of seats is outfitted with electrical outlets, grab bars, coat hooks and overhead luggage racks.

The cars are manufactured in Lincoln, Nebraska, and final testing takes place in New York and Connecticut.

Photo credit: MTA.