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Relief Coming to New Haven Line Commuters

NEW YORK (WCBS 880) - On Metro-North, New Haven commuters are weary from taking the worst of winter woes.

New equipment is part of the mix on the Harlem and Hudson lines, but a typical New Haven train has been in constant service since the 1970s.

Metro-North's assistant Chief Mechanical Officer, John Hogan, says about 25 percent of the New Haven fleet has been knocked out by the weather, and that's about 130 cars.

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WCBS 880 Reporter Paul Murnane finds out what happened on the New Haven line.

Blowing snow got sucked into traction motors and cabinets of electrical gear, and the cold affected braking systems.

"Hopefully, we're at the bottom of it. We got some warm weather coming, and we look forward to starting to improve day by day. We've gone as far as sending some of our cars to our Croton shop, to help us get some of these cars back into service," said Hogan.

The hope is that relief will arrive in days or maybe a week. Eight and ten-car trains have dwindled to trains five cars long, in some cases.

"They are crowded, and I just hope they can all be patient until the new cars come. Hopefully over the next week or next few days we can gradually get better," said Hogan.

Hey, New Haven commuters...tell us below how your commute has been this winter.

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