Service is improving on Metro-North's New Haven line

Connecticut, February 11, 2011 - With the constant snowfalls seemingly abated, commuter car availability is improving on Metro-North's New Haven line. At the peak of the snowfall car failures, half of the New Haven fleet was out of service, with a majority of those cars being the 'Cosmopolitan' fleet of M-2/4/6.

The 'Cosmo' car concept came into existence when they were designed in the 1960s and built into the 80s. They saved  the railroad at the time when the inherited New York Central and New Haven equipment that was ready for scrapping years before it actually happened. All this 'vintage' equipment constantly broke down at all times of the year, making the trip into Manhattan impossible to predict. Employers were beginning to consider (and some did) moving out of Manhattan and into suburbia for this very reason. With the arrival of the Cosmo cars, reliability and on-time performance improved and they saved the railroad. This is a subject many have failed to recognize and should be noted in the media - so let me be the first!!!!

While the M-2/4/6 cars saved the railroad, they had one flaw - snow. Fine particles gets into the traction motors, causing them to short out and become unuseable. Door issues suddenly because evident because the snow would inhibit proper proper door panel movement. All this is not new - it has been reported in the media before so these issues are not new and are also common knowledge. That said, Metro-North crews work diligently to make up for the deficiencies in these 'California cars' but somtimes Mother Nature has a way of defeating the best of intentions and preventative measures.

Several years ago, Connecticut (owner of the trackage in the Nutmeg State), began a process to correct these deficiencies and the resulting design gave birth to the M-8 cars built by Kawasaki. Originally supposed to come on line in 2009, production line problems occurred when the proper steel was not available and building stopped. When the process resumed, the delivery dates kept getting pushed back. This blog chronicled their 'debut' in December, 2010, only to find the M-8s could not pass their 4,000 mile error-free testing benchmark due to a reported software issue that fouled the wayside signalling system employed by operator Metro-North. The result - the 4,000-mile 'clock' had to be restarted.

WCBS 880's Paul Murnane reported from Greenwich, CT on February 11, 2011
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2011/02/11/gov-malloy-stays-on-top-of-new-haven-line-problems/

that the first cut of M-8 cars could pass the 4,000-mile 'barrier' and we might begin to see the new equipment come on line soon but obviously not all at once. This is an obvious fact that all M-8s subsequent to the first 8, would be delivered as-completed to the New Haven maintenance shop from Nebraska where those cars are being manufactured. Railroad enthusiasts (a/k/a rail fans), have photographed the delivery of these cars piecemeal. This is good news as it confirms the production line is rolling.

 

These M-8 cars share a common thread with their Bombardier-built M-7 cars that operate on Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North's Harlem and Hudson lines - their design minimizes the damage snow can cause to the traction motors, making them more reliable.

 

When the M-8s come on line, I want to be the first to ride them as they represent the most modern and reliable design in commuter railroading. Will I miss the Cosmo fleet when they're gone? Absolutely because they saved the railroad 30 years ago and kept commuting alive while revitalizing the region economically.

 

The next time you step onto a subway car or commuter coach of any type, consider the work the mechanics perform to keep them rolling. Falling prey to the pancea of saying new cars solves the problem is wrong because they still need to be maintained so they can keep rolling. This is one job that can't be outsourced overseas, thankfully.