New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill joined U.S. Reps. Rob Menendez (D-NJ), Nellie Pou (D-NJ) and NJ Transit president and CEO Kris Kolluri to showcase the fleet modernization for the transit system.
The event featured the arrival of the first of 374 next generation multilevel rail cars, and a new mobile police command center. The rail car will undergo several months of final testing and commissioning before joining up to 40 additional new cars expected to be deployed into passenger service later this year.
At the event at NJ Transit’s Meadows Maintenance Complex in Kearny, the transit agency also displayed a new 40-foot bus and a new Access Link paratransit vehicle. Along with the renovated River LINE light rail vehicles, the fleet additions represent a $3 billion investment into the agency’s plan to fully modernize its rail and bus fleets by 2031.
“New Jersey commuters deserve a transit system that is reliable and state-of-the-art,” Sherrill said/ “That’s why my budget makes a historic investment to modernize one of the oldest rail fleets in the nation—starting with 40 new rail cars and 250 new buses this year. By upgrading its fleet of vehicles, NJ TRANSIT is providing greater comfort, efficiency, and dependability to riders statewide. Combined with historic projects like the Portal North Bridge and Gateway Tunnel, we’re making sure commuters have a better ride now and in the future.”
The new Multilevel III rail cars have increased mechanical reliability, allowing NJ Transit to retire rail cars built in the 1970s, and replace them with cars that are ten times more reliable and travel more than 400,000 miles before a mechanical failure. Additional customer amenities on the cars include additional seating capacity and enhanced accessibility, higher operations speeds, USB charging ports and new onboard information systems. The new rail cars replace the agency’s Arrow III ,and Comet II and IV single-level cars.
“The federal funding we secured for NJ TRANSIT’s fleet modernization is delivering more reliable service for our residents,” Menendez said. “We worked closely with NJ TRANSIT to support their efforts to improve the commuting experience across New Jersey and to purchase new trains, buses, and vehicles through federal grants. I look forward to continuing our partnership to make commuting an easier and more seamless experience for our constituents.”