Officials have revealed the new Red Line train designs, and you could get a peek inside before they hit the rails.
A mock-up of the new Red Line train debuted at City Hall Plaza this week and will be on display through Thursday.
Governor Charlie Baker, Massachusetts Transportation Secretary and CEO Stephanie Pollack, MBTA General Manager Luis Ramírez and others toured the train on Tuesday, and the public can step inside as well between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. while it’s in City Hall Plaza.
The updated Red Line train design is expected to be on MBTA tracks for testing by March of next year. The revamp is part of an initiative to improve the MBTA overall.
“New fleet vehicles are just one of the many investments being made by the Baker-Polito Administration to improve the customer experience and improve service,” Pollack said in a statement. “The MBTA is investing nearly $2 billion in the Red Line as part of the Red Line/Orange Line Improvement Program, which includes procuring these new Red Line vehicles. The upcoming new fleet for the Red Line, coupled with new and improved track, signals, and other core infrastructure upgrades translates to a better, more reliable service for MBTA customers.”
The MBTA’s Red and Orange Lines are the two most heavily traveled lines within the transit system, Ramírez said at the ribbon cutting for the new Red Line train, per State House News Service.
Some current Red Line trains date back to the 1970s, but soon, the line will get 252 new vehicles.
Inside the new Red Line train cars
The mock-up at City Hall Plaza is two-thirds the size of the actual new Red Line train cars, officials said, but still showcases the to-come updates.
The China Railway Rolling Stock Corp. has been contracted to build the new Red Line train vehicles, which are being assembled in a manufacturing facility in Springfield, Massachusetts.
The new Red Line train cars will hold more passengers and have accessibility improvements like wider doors, smaller gaps between the platform and the train door, dedicated accessibility areas and advanced audio and visual technology to dispense information to riders.
The Red Line trains will also have technology-enhanced signage and emergency intercom units, and are equipped with modern propulsion and braking systems, which officials say will reduce rider wait times.
