DOUBLE-DECKER COMMUTER CARS ON NJT

[al-in-chgo]

This past October riding NJT from Trenton to Newark, I was really impressed by what seemed to be brand-new double-decker cars.  Smooth, quiet, comfortable and totally non-claustrophobia-inducing.

Can someone tell me a little about the rolling stock, manufacturer, etc...?

Also, I noticed that the cars are riveted.  I thought shot-welding took over ever since the streamlined 1930s.  Is riveting on commuter equipment making a comeback?  Or is it that it never really went away....?? 

All answers welcome, thanks, al s.

 

[Anonymous]

 Rode those about two months back....

Train seemed slower as opposed to MU NJT silverliners

[paulsafety]

From an NJT press release:

NJ TRANSIT will exercise an option negotiated in a 2002 contract with Bombardier Transportation for the purchase of 131 additional bi-level rail cars, bringing the total order to 231 cars. The option allows the Corporation to take advantage of a favorable and very competitive price-$1.57 million per car-that was built into the original agreement.

The new order, at a total cost of $214 million, will maximize the prior investment in developing state-of-the-art rail cars, which have been specifically designed to operate through the Hudson River tunnel. NJ TRANSIT is expected to take delivery of the first bi-level cars from the original 2002 purchase at the end of the summer.

The bi-level fleet enables NJ TRANSIT to replace more than 170 aging and obsolete Comet-I cars currently in service on the Main/Bergen, Montclair-Boonton, Raritan Valley and North Jersey Coast Lines.

http://www.njtransit.com/tm/tm_servlet.srv?hdnPageAction=PressReleaseTo&PRESS_RELEASE_ID=1931

[blue streak 1]

Question: If NJ transit's loads keep increasing will they even consider retiring Comet cars? Parking all that equipment may become a major problem.

[paulsafety]

Question: If NJ transit's loads keep increasing will they even consider retiring Comet cars? Parking all that equipment may become a major problem.

Part of the "Access to the Regions Core" program is a new storage yard in the meadowlands in between Hoboken and the Secaucus Transfer.  That yard and the new mid town terminal should help soak up the equipment.

[al-in-chgo]

Question: If NJ transit's loads keep increasing will they even consider retiring Comet cars? Parking all that equipment may become a major problem.

Part of the "Access to the Regions Core" program is a new storage yard in the meadowlands in between Hoboken and the Secaucus Transfer.  That yard and the new mid town terminal should help soak up the equipment.

Does NJT get a lot of subsidy?  The authority seems to have a lot on the ball -- contracting for big numbers of double-deckers and saving hundreds of thousands of each one -- retiring older cars -- even the fares are cheaper than what I'm used to in the Northeast.

I'm not preaching, because Chicago's Metra gets only about 35-40% of its revenue from the fare box. 

Would someone like to point out where NJT is on these matters?  - al