The MTA(Metropolitan Transportation Authority) of New York board approved the purchase of 535 state-of-the-art, next generation R211 Subway Cars that will operate in two places. NYCT's(New York City Transit) B Division Subway Lines, and SIR (Staten Island Railway) service. These cars are replacing the 1975-1978 R46 Subway Cars which at their time of introduction were also dubbed as "State-of-The-Art", which indeed they were and set the pace for what we have today. They were indeed our 1st "Tech Trains".
The R211 contract which was awarded on Wednesday, January 24th, 2018 consists of a base order of 535 cars of which 440 closed-ended for NYCT, 75 closed-ended cars for SIR, and 20 open gangway cars. These open gangway cars will be a new design for New York City Subway riders. This style of subway car are already in use in Toronto, Ontario, Canada with the TTC (Toronto Transit Commission). This design is prevalent in LRV (Light Rail Vehicles) which provide movement through various sections of the train without doors. Other cities that are using these type cars also include Montreal and other cities around the world.
The R211 contract has provisions in place for options of 1,077 additional cars which if exercised would give us a grand total of 1,612 new subway cars, with a price tag of $3.7 Billion dollars and of course this requires MTA board approval. The future is looking quite bright for New Yorker's who use the Subway System. The very 1st R211 will be in the system for testing in the year 2020. For more information about the new subway cars go the the MTA's website by clicking HERE to get the full details