Gov. Baker Tours Mock-Up Of New MBTA Trains
MEDFORD (CBS) -- Gov. Charlie Baker paid a visit Tuesday morning to the MBTA's rail yard to see a mock-up of the new Red and Orange Line trains that will be joining the fleet over the next several years.
The 3/4 scale mock-up is seen as a milestone on the road to delivery of more than 400 new trains by 2022.
They will have a host of modern amenities, including brighter displays and greater capacity than on current trains.
Gov. Baker said he was especially excited about greater accessibility.
"The doors, for example, are a lot wider," Gov. Baker told WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Lana Jones. "There's actually in fact an automated grate that comes out from the side that can connect to a station to make it easier for someone in a wheelchair to get on and off."
Engineers, conductors, safety specialists, and others will go over 3/4 scale versions of the new trains to make recommendations for the next batch of six pilot trains scheduled to be delivered by manufacturer CRRC of Springfield in December.
MBTA COO Jeff Gonneville seems impressed.
"The vehicles have modern propulsion systems, modern braking systems, modern electronics," he said. "The vehicles themselves are actually being designed to modern crash energy standards, which means that, if there was an incident, they are far safer than any vehicle the MBTA is operating in its fleet now."
The MBTA hopes to be able to let the public see the mock-up before recommendations are sent to the manufacturer.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Lana Jones reports
