Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority has moved forward on a plan to update its aging rail fleet.
The proposed Rail Car Replacement Project, presented to the GCRTA board at during its committee meetings Tuesday, will add as many as 60 high floor light rail cars over a seven-year period. If approved, the project will replace 69 of the transit agency’s current rail cars.
“I am excited for my team, and our customers regarding this historical achievement,” GCRTA General Manager and Chief Executive Officer India Birdsong Terry said in the news release. “This new rail car model reduces inventory and maintenance costs, streamlines training, and increases future route flexibility, leading to enhanced customer access for future generations of GCRTA riders.”
The updated rail cars will be ADA accessible, and come with 52 passenger seats, two wheelchair-accessible seats and four bicycles capacity per rail car.
Chief Operating Officer Floun’say Caver said the pending replacement project would allow GCRTA to increase rail route flexibility, and create trips for passengers the current infrastructure cannot.
“These rail cars provide us with opportunities for new service alignments that will completely enhance our customers’ riding experience,” Caver said in the news release. “Imagine the ability to take a train directly from the Green Road Station to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport Station without having to switch trains at Tower City.”
GCRTA’s current fleet includes both light rail and heavy rail vehicles. But the proposed light rail vehicles offer two door heights, making them compatible with both heavy and light rail lines, which Caver said will allow for streamlined maintenance across the rail fleet.
“This will reduce inventory costs as well as maintenance costs. It will also streamline our operator and mechanical training and reduce the cost there,” he said. “So, one could imagine that our mechanics will have to learn only how to fix one type of vehicle as opposed to two, and our operators will learn how to drive one vehicle as opposed to two.”
Current rail cars are still safe to operate, Caver said during the committee meeting, but due to their age, the cars are prone to rust and corrosion.
An evaluation of the rail fleet found that it would be more effective for GCRTA to replace the fleet, rather than repair the rail cars individually.
“The rationale for that replacement was that our trains were experiencing structural loss from corrosion, that there was a lack of readily available parts, and that the cost of rehabilitation of the fleet would far exceed the replacement cost,” Caver said.
The GCRTA Rail Car Replacement Project Team recommended the selection of Siemens Mobility Incorporated as the preferred vendor for the project Tuesday, along with a request to award a contract to purchase up to 24 Siemens Model S200 rail cars, and an option to purchase a total of 60 rail cars in the future.
The project is expected to cost $393 million, which includes the cost of the cars, infrastructure and railroad changes, and spare parts. The board is expected to vote on the project at it April 18 board meeting.
