Metro General Manager John Catoe said he will recommend against buying the fleet of high-tech railcars that the agency has been promoting for months and instead advocate sticking with the existing model when Metro’s board of directors meets in July.
Metro must order 128 new railcars this year if the agency is to be ready in time for the opening of the planned Silver Line rail extension to Washington Dulles International Airport.
In January, the agency released preliminary design pictures for the new generation of 7000-series railcars, which would feature stainless steel exteriors, taller seats with more legroom and interactive liquid crystal display station maps.
But Catoe said cash-strapped Metro can ill afford such luxuries, especially for the Dulles project, which the Federal Transit Administration is closely monitoring for cost-effectiveness before agreeing to provide $900 million in federal funds.
“We need to price it both ways,” Catoe said. “What’s the price of the more advanced vehicle, and what’s the price of the existing vehicle with some updated electronics, which is usually cheaper?
“I would recommend that we stay with the existing vehicle,” he said. “That’s a shot I would call to recommend to the board.”
Metro railcar chief Dave Kubicek said the existing 6000-series cars would not be able to accommodate many of the features being explored for the 7000-series.
The curved-wall design of the aluminum 6000-series railcars could not support the higher-backed, more ergonomic stainless steel seats, he said.
The cars also could not be retrofitted with the time-saving technology planned for the 7000-series, including screens on operators’ consoles that pinpoint the location of door malfunctions — a common railcar occurrence. The consoles currently alert the operators to malfunctions but do not identify the door, forcing the driver to examine each car until it is found.
Kubicek said Metro also would get a longer service life out of stainless steel railcars than it does out of aluminum ones.
“Long-term, [stainless steel] is nice to have,” Catoe said. “But those are the types of choices we’re going to have to make.”
The final decision about the new railcars’ design will rest with the agency’s board of directors.
