An Orange Line train is taking a long ride from China to Boston.
The MBTA tweeted a photo of a scale replica of the new Orange Line car as it was being loaded onto a cargo ship in China on Dec. 26.
The train is being shipped to Boston, where it will arrive in about a month, the MBTA said.
A Chinese company won the bid to build the new cars—152 Orange Line and 132 Red Line trains. They will be assembled at a plant the company is building in Springfield. ChinaRailway Rolling Stock Corp. is building the trains, which will begin hitting the tracks in Boston in 2019. Production is expected to be completed by 2022.
As for the replica, once in Boston, it will be brought to the WellingtonMaintenanceFacility in Medford, where Orange Line cars are held and repaired.
The train now in transit is two-thirds the size of the actual Orange Line cars that will rumble along the tracks, said Tspokesman Joe Pesaturo. T engineers and other employees will get a chance to inspect the replica, and provide feedback to the train manufacturer before production begins.
Images of the new Orange Line train design were unveiled at the MBTA Fiscal Management and Control Board Meeting in November.
