New ‘gangway’ subway cars due in fall will blow your rides wide open
New subway cars that will let passengers walk from one end of a train to another without fear of falling to the tracks will run this fall on the A and C lines, MTA officials said Friday.
Two new R211 trains with open connections between cars will run in sets of 10 cars, the MTA says.
“They have the soft accordion walls that allow the entire train set to be connected so people can move from one car to another smoothly,” said MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber.
If the two new trains work well enough, the agency plans to deploy more subway trains with open gangways in the coming years. They are part of an order of 535 new R211 trains being built for the MTA at a Kawasaki factory in Nebraska.
R211s without open gangways will start running on the system starting in the spring, the MTA says.
The new R211s have other advantages. They’re equipped for MTA plans to modernize the subway signal system, which will allow more trains to run at rush hours. They also have wider doors, spaces designed for disabled riders, and security cameras.
They will eventually replace R46 trains now used on the A and C subways and on the Staten Island Railway.
The R46s — known for their faux wood paneling, red-andorange plastic seats and the bright yellow digital signs — were introduced to the subways in the 1970s.
“We do love the R46s — we love the color scheme, we love the old timey-ness,” Lieber said. “But it’s time for them to go for a swim.” Since 2001, old subway cars have been dumped into the Atlantic Ocean, where they become habitats for fish.