MBTA CAF USA Type 9

Type 9 LRV
Type 9 LRV
	#3900, the first Type 9 built, at North Station
	Interior of a Type 9
Stock type	Low-floor light rail vehicle
Manufacturer	CAF USA
Assembly	Elmira, New York
Constructed	2017–2019
Entered service	December 21, 2018
Number built	24
Predecessor	MBTA AnsaldoBreda Type 8
Fleet numbers	3900–3923
Capacity	44 seats; 212 total;
Operators	Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
Lines served	Green Line
Specifications
Car length	74 ft (23 m)
Width	104 in (260 cm)
Low-floor	70%
Entry	Level
Articulated sections	3
Weight	86,000 lb (39,000 kg)
Electric system(s)	Overhead line, 600 V DC
Current collector(s)	Pantograph
Safety system(s)	Crash energy management
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)

Last updated September 24, 2024

The Type 9 LRV is a class of low-floor light rail vehicles manufactured by Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF) for the MBTA Green Line. The fleet of 24 Type 9 cars was ordered in 2014 for the Green Line Extension project, and the first cars began service in 2018. Final assembly for the Type 9 cars was performed in Elmira, New York, from body shells built in Spain.

Background

The Green Line is a light rail system in Greater Boston, Massachusetts, which operates four lines that serve the city's western and northern inner suburbs via Downtown Boston. The Green Line's four services, the B, C, D, and E Branches, use infrastructure that is descended from the Boston streetcar system, with portions of the system dating back to 1897. The Green Line is one of the most-used light rail systems in the United States, serving over 101,000 passengers per day in 2023.^[1]

The state of Massachusetts committed to extending the Green Line in 1991, as part of a settlement related to the impacts of the Big Dig, but construction work on the Green Line Extension did not begin until 2012. To operate service on the 4.3 mi (6.9 km) extension, the MBTA needed 24 additional vehicles.

The MBTA's light rail vehicle types follow the nomenclature of the Boston Elevated Railway, which operated five series of cars. The numbering resumed with the unbuilt Type 6 prototype in the late 1960s, and continued with the custom-designed Type 7 and Type 8 of the 1980s and 1990s respectively.^[2]

History

The MBTA began the procurement process for the Type 9 LRVs in tandem with the planning for the Green Line Extension. The MBTA sought a different manufacturer for the Type 9 than its predecessor the Type 8, which was built by Italian firm AnsaldoBreda. The Type 8 cars were prone to derailments and breakdowns, and were the subject of multiple disputes between AnsaldoBreda and the MBTA. In response to the difficulties faced with the Type 8 fleet, the MBTA revised its procurement practices, focusing on project management by internal staff. The MBTA also committed to providing equipment manufacturers with more precise specifications of its infrastructure, which is unique due to its age and condition.^[3]

A request for proposals for the Type 9 cars was issued in 2011, and two manufacturers placed a bid. In May 2014, CAF USA, the American subsidiary of Spanish firm Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, was selected to construct the new LRVs. The total cost of the 24-car fleet was $118 million, or $4.92 million per car.^[4]^[5] Initially, the new cars would be delivered from the end of 2017 to the end of 2018.^[4] Buy America regulations meant that the bodyshells of the cars were manufactured in Spain, with final assembly at Elmira, New York.^[6]

The first car was delivered to the MBTA for testing in March 2018.^[7] Governor Charlie Baker and Massachusetts Department of Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack took a ceremonial first ride on the Type 9 cars in July of that year, and the cars began regular service on December 21.^[8]^[9] The remaining 23 LRVs were delivered in 2018–2020 and entered service in 2019–2021.^[10] The Green Line Extension opened in phases in 2022, years behind schedule.^[11]

Features and specifications

The Type 9 cars introduce new features for safety, efficiency, and passenger experience. They are the first light rail vehicles in the United States to incorporate crash energy management technology, a form of crumple zone that protects the train operator and passengers in a collision.^[8]^[9] The Type 9 cars are fitted with positive train control equipment, to be used with the future Green Line Train Protection System.^[12]

Accessibility features include improved bridge plates for faster step-free boarding, and larger reserved areas for users of wheelchairs and strollers. The Type 9 cars are fitted with sliding plug doors, which open and close faster than the folding doors of earlier MBTA cars, speeding up boarding.^[7]

The Type 9 cars operate in two-car and three-car trains in regular service. Type 9 cars are only capable of operating with other Type 9 cars in regular service, unlike their predecessors, which are compatible across multiple models. The Type 9 cars are still capable of pushing or towing other car models in an emergency.^[2]

Safety concerns

The Federal Transit Administration conducted a comprehensive safety inspection of the MBTA rail system in 2022, and criticized the MBTA for insufficient safety procedures. The inspection report concluded that the MBTA's understaffed safety department was not properly involved in capital projects, which should be subject to a rigorous safety certification process. The report highlighted the Type 9 cars as an example of this lack of supervision, and criticized the safety certification for the Type 9's brakes as insufficient.^[13]^[14]

On April 17, 2023, the day of the 2023 Boston Marathon, a Type 9 train broke down at Boylston station, disrupting Green Line service through downtown Boston for hours. A misaligned floor panel in the center section of a Type 9 car buckled under load, requiring the train to be evacuated. All Type 9 cars were removed from service for inspections, returning to service shortly afterwards.^[15]

Future

The MBTA currently operates the Type 9 cars on all four branches of the Green Line. Their successors, dubbed the Type 10, will be built by CAF, and will replace the entire Type 7 and Type 8 fleets by the early 2030s.^[16] Following the introduction of the Type 10 cars, the Type 9 cars are expected to be reassigned to the Ashmont–Mattapan High-Speed Line. They will replace the Mattapan line's current fleet of PCC streetcars, which were built in the mid-1940s and have been continually rebuilt since.^[17] The infrastructure of the Mattapan line will need to be modified for the Type 9 cars, which are longer and heavier than the PCC cars. The plans for replacing the PCC cars on the Mattapan line have caused controversy, with some figures advocating for the PCC cars to be retained, and others arguing that they are long overdue for replacement.^[18]^[19]

Related Research Articles

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority is the public agency responsible for operating most public transportation services in Greater Boston, Massachusetts. The MBTA transit network includes the MBTA subway with three metro lines, two light rail lines, and a five-line bus rapid transit system ; MBTA bus local and express service; the twelve-line MBTA Commuter Rail system, and several ferry routes. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 239,981,700, or about 796,300 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2024, of which the rapid transit lines averaged 265,900 and the light rail lines 95,900, making it the fourth-busiest rapid transit system and the third-busiest light rail system in the United States. As of the second quarter of 2024, average weekday ridership of the commuter rail system was 107,500, making it the fifth-busiest commuter rail system in the U.S.

The Red Line is a rapid transit line operated by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) as part of the MBTA subway system. The line runs south and east underground from Alewife station in North Cambridge through Somerville and Cambridge, surfacing to cross the Longfellow Bridge then returning to tunnels under Downtown Boston. It continues underground through South Boston, splitting into two branches on the surface at JFK/UMass station. The Ashmont branch runs southwest through Dorchester to Ashmont station, where the connecting light rail Ashmont–Mattapan High Speed Line continues to Mattapan station. The Braintree branch runs southeast through Quincy and Braintree to Braintree station.

The Green Line is a semi-metro system run by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) in the Boston, Massachusetts, metropolitan area. It is the oldest MBTA subway line, and with tunnel sections dating from 1897, the oldest subway in North America. It runs underground through downtown Boston, and on the surface into inner suburbs via six branches on radial boulevards and grade-separated alignments. With an average daily weekday ridership of 101,000 in 2023, it is among the most heavily used light rail systems in the country. The line was assigned the green color in 1967 during a systemwide rebranding because several branches pass through sections of the Emerald Necklace of Boston.

The Orange Line is a rapid transit line operated by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) as part of the MBTA subway system. The line runs south on the surface from Oak Grove station in Malden, Massachusetts through Malden and Medford, paralleling the Haverhill Line, then crosses the Mystic River on a bridge into Somerville, then into Charlestown. It passes under the Charles River and runs through Downtown Boston in the Washington Street Tunnel. The line returns to the surface in the South End, then follows the Southwest Corridor southwest in a cut through Roxbury and Jamaica Plain to Forest Hills station.

The Ashmont–Mattapan High-Speed Line, commonly referred to as the Mattapan Trolley, is a partially grade-separated light rail line which forms part of the MBTA's Red Line rapid transit line. The line, which runs through Boston and Milton, Massachusetts, opened on August 26, 1929, as a conversion of a former commuter rail line. It exclusively uses PCC streetcars built in the 1940s. Passengers must transfer at Ashmont to access the rest of the Red Line, which uses heavy rail metro rolling stock.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) system is mostly but not fully accessible. Like most American mass transit systems, much of the MBTA subway and commuter rail were built before wheelchair access became a requirement under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The MBTA has renovated most stations to be compliant with the ADA, and all stations built since 1990 are accessible. The MBTA also has a paratransit program, The Ride, which provides accessible vehicles to transport passengers who cannot use the fixed-route system.

Muni Metro is a semi-metro system serving San Francisco, California, United States. Operated by the San Francisco Municipal Railway (Muni), a part of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA), Muni's light rail lines saw an average of 91,000 boardings per day as of the second quarter of 2024 and a total of 24,324,600 boardings in 2023, making it the sixth-busiest light rail system in the United States.

Hitachi Rail Italy S.p.A. is a multinational rolling stock manufacturer company based in Pistoia, Italy. Formerly AnsaldoBreda S.p.A., a subsidiary of state-owned Finmeccanica, the company was sold in 2015 to Hitachi Rail of Japan. After the deal was finalized, the current name was adapted in November 2015 to reflect the new ownership.

Heath Street station is a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Green Line light rail station in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the southwestern terminus of the Green Line E branch. It is located at the intersection of South Huntington Avenue and Heath Street on the border between the Mission Hill and Jamaica Plain neighborhoods.

The C branch, also called the Beacon Street Line or Cleveland Circle Line, is one of four branches of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's Green Line light rail system in the Boston, Massachusetts metropolitan area. The line begins at Cleveland Circle in the Brighton neighborhood of Boston and runs on the surface through Brookline along the median of Beacon Street. Reentering Boston, the line goes underground through the St. Mary's Street incline and joins the B and D branches at Kenmore. Trains run through the Boylston Street subway to Copley where the E branch joins, then continue through the Tremont Street subway to downtown Boston. The C branch has terminated at Government Center station since October 2021.

The B branch, also called the Commonwealth Avenue branch or Boston College branch, is a branch of the MBTA Green Line light rail system which operates on Commonwealth Avenue west of downtown Boston, Massachusetts. One of four branches of the Green Line, the B branch runs from Boston College station down the median of Commonwealth Avenue to Blandford Street. There, it enters Blandford Street portal into Kenmore station, where it merges with the C and D branches. The combined services run into the Boylston Street subway and Tremont Street subway to downtown Boston. B branch service has terminated at Government Center since October 2021. Unlike the other branches, B branch service runs solely through the city limits of Boston. The Green Line Rivalry between Boston College and Boston University is named in reference to the B branch, which runs to both universities.

The Green Line D branch is a light rail line in Boston, Brookline, Cambridge, Newton, and Somerville, Massachusetts, operating as part of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Green Line. The line runs on a grade separated surface right-of-way for 9 miles (14 km) from Riverside station to Fenway station. The line merges into the C branch tunnel west of Kenmore, then follows the Boylston Street subway and Tremont Street subway to North Station. It is the longest and busiest of the four Green Line branches. As of June 2024, service operates on 6 to 8-minute headways at weekday peak hours and 7 to 13-minute headways at other times, using 13 to 19 trains.

The US Standard Light Rail Vehicle (SLRV) was a light rail vehicle (LRV) built by Boeing Vertol in the 1970s. The Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA) of the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) promoted it as a standardized vehicle for U.S. cities. Part of a series of defense conversion projects in the waning days of the Vietnam War, the SLRV was seen as both a replacement for older PCC streetcars in many cities and as a catalyst for cities to construct new light rail systems. The US SLRV was marketed as and is popularly known as the Boeing LRV or SLRV, and should not be confused with their prior lunar roving vehicles for NASA.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) operates rapid transit, light rail, and bus rapid transit services in the Boston metropolitan area, collectively referred to as the rapid transit, subway, the T system, or simply the T.

Watertown Carhouse is a bus maintenance facility and former streetcar carhouse located in the southern section of Watertown, Massachusetts, across the Charles River from Watertown Square. As Watertown Yard, the site also serves as a bus depot serving local and express routes 52, 57, 59, and 504, with additional connections available at Watertown Square station on the opposite end of the Watertown Bridge.

The Green Line Extension (GLX) was a construction project to extend the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Green Line light rail system northwest into Somerville and Medford, two inner suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts. The project opened in two phases in 2022 at a total cost of $2.28 billion. Total ridership on the 4.3-mile (6.9 km) extension is estimated to reach 45,000 one-way trips per day in 2030.

The P3010 is an articulated light rail car used on the Los Angeles Metro Rail system manufactured by Kinki Sharyo, operated on all of the Metro Rail light rail lines.

MBTA AnsaldoBreda Type 8 is a light rail vehicle that was built by Breda for the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA). The cars were constructed from 1998-2007 and replaced all remaining Boeing LRVs. They were built to have a low-floor section to allow for accessibility by all. As of 2018, most cars are coupled to one Kinki Sharyo Type 7 in regular service to create a two-car train with one accessible car. They run on all branches of the Green Line. The MBTA currently runs 92 out of 95 Type 8 vehicles, numbered 3800 to 3894. They are maintained at the Reservoir and Riverside carhouses.

MBTA Kinki Sharyo Type 7 is a type of light rail vehicle owned by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA). Since 1986, the MBTA has used the Type 7 on its Green Line light rail network. It is the first rail vehicle for the United States built by Japanese rail vehicle manufacturer Kinki Sharyo.

The Type 10 LRV is a future class of low-floor light rail vehicles, to be manufactured by Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF) for the MBTA Green Line in Greater Boston, Massachusetts. The Type 10 cars are 54% longer than the existing rolling stock of the Green Line, and will be equipped with new safety and accessibility features.

References

↑ O'Hara, Mary Ann; Turners, Pat (August 22, 2024). "History of Funding Update" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. p. 2.
1 2 "The MBTA Vehicle Inventory Page". NETransit. July 9, 2024. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
↑ LTK Engineering Services (September 2014). "Green Line Type 9 Risks & Lessons Learned". Federal Transit Administration.
1 2 "Board Approves Purchase of New Green Line Cars & Buses" (Press release). Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority. May 14, 2014. Archived from the original on 2021-03-09. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
↑ Annear, Steve (May 13, 2014). "New Green Line Trains Will Hit the Tracks By 2017". Boston Magazine. Archived from the original on 2014-05-24. Retrieved 2024-09-06.
↑ "CAF wins Boston Green Line order". Railway Gazette International. May 16, 2014. Retrieved 2024-09-06.
1 2 Vaccaro, Adam (March 24, 2018). "First of 24 new Green Line cars has arrived". Boston Globe. Archived from the original on 2018-03-28.
1 2 Buell, Spencer (December 21, 2018). "The First New MBTA Green Line Train Just Hit the Tracks". Boston Magazine. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
1 2 "New MBTA Green Line Car goes into Passenger Service". MBTA. December 21, 2018. Retrieved 2024-09-06.
↑ Belcher, Jonathan (January–February 2021). "MBTA Vehicle Inventory as of February 28, 2021". Rollsign. Vol. 58, no. 1/2. Boston Street Railway Association. pp. 8, 9.
↑ "MBTA Celebrates Opening of the Green Line Extension Medford Branch" (Press release). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. December 12, 2022.
↑ Cawley, Gayla (January 20, 2023). "Green Line anti-collision system won't be done until 2025". Boston Herald. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
↑ "SAFETY MANAGEMENT INSPECTION: Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities" (PDF). Federal Transit Administration. August 31, 2022. pp. 39–41.
↑ Beaudet, Mike (August 31, 2022). "5 takeaways from federal safety report into MBTA". WCVB . Retrieved 2024-09-05.
↑ "Video shows floor buckling aboard crowded Green Line trolley". WCVB. April 28, 2023. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
↑ Wanek-Libman, Mischa (September 6, 2022). "CAF USA lands MBTA Type 10 'Supercar' order". Mass Transit Magazine. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
↑ Bohl, Chloe Courtney (August 31, 2023). "Improvements to the Mattapan Line are finally underway — but riders may not see results for years". Boston.com. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
↑ Forry, Bill (January 30, 2019). "Editorial: The MBTA's trolley plan is a reasonable compromise". Dorchester Reporter. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
↑ Bhat, Tanisha (June 28, 2023). "Residents object to transfer of 'hand-me-down' Green Line trains to Mattapan line". The Bay State Banner. Retrieved 2024-09-04.

External links

Media related to CAF Type 9 LRVs at Wikimedia Commons

v t e MBTA light rail vehicles
Retired	PCC streetcar (3000–3346) US Standard Light Rail Vehicle (3400–3543)
Active	Kinki Sharyo Type 7 (3600–3719) AnsaldoBreda Type 8 (3800–3894) CAF USA Type 9 (3900–3923)
Future	Type 10 "Supercar"