USA: Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker visited a mock-up of the metro car design that CRRC is supplying for Boston’s Orange Line at MBTA’s Wellington Yard on March 21, accompanied by Secretary of Transportation Stephanie Pollack, Acting MBTA General Manager Brian Shortsleeve and MBTA Chief Operating Officer Jeff Gonneville.
CRRC MA won a $430·2m contract in 2014 to supply 152 cars for the Orange Line and 132 cars for the Red Line. Two years later MBTA ordered a further 120 cars for the Red Line. The 152 Orange Line cars will replace the existing rolling stock and also increase the fleet by 32 cars to enable peak headways to be reduced from 6 min to 4 min.
A contractual requirement for 60% domestic content led to CRRC MA building a $95m final assembly plant and test track in Springfield. Completion of the factory is due later this year.
CRRC will build an initial 12 cars in China. Pilot vehicles for the Orange Line are due to be delivered in early 2018, with the Red Line pilot cars following about a year later. Series-built cars would be delivered at a rate of around four per month in 2018-21 for the Orange Line and 2019-21 for the Red Line.
Based on China’s Type B design, the Orange Line trainsets will offer an increase in capacity over the existing rolling stock of 15 passengers per car, as well as wider doors and four wheelchair accessible areas.
