First MBTA LRV arrives for re-build

Type-7 #3660
at the Riverside car house.

Last June, Scott Page, a Boston to a T Guest Contributor, reported that the MBTA had approved the overhaul of 86 Green Line Type-7 Light Rail Vehicles (LRVs). The vehicles are set to be overhauled by Alstom Transportation which has a facility in Hornell, New York.

Four months later, the overhaul program is finally starting to move forward.

Two weeks ago, the first of the 86 cars (LRV #3614) left the MBTA's Riverside yard on a flatbed trailer and headed up to Alstom. This first car, the "pilot car" will take a little over a year to overhaul. Pilot cars usually take the longest to overhaul due to fact that it is the first time the contractors are working on the equipment. If the contract continues on its original schedule, the pilot car should be returning to Boston by November 7th of next year. If all goes well with the pilot car, sets of cars will then be sent up to Alstom on a rotating basis.

The 86 Type-7 LRV's that are being overhauled were built by the Kinki-Sharyo company of Japan between 1986-87. They have been the true powerhouse's behind the Green Line for the past 25 years. They have averaged almost 1 Million in-service miles since they began running on the rails in Boston.

The vehicles are now showing significant signs of age however. Although these vehicles are still more reliable than their Type-8 counterparts it is time for them to get some significant upgrades.

Here is a breakdown of what kind of work will be done to the vehicles during their overhaul.

Work Done	Equipment
Full replacement with upgraded design	HVAC system, Low Voltage Power Supply, Aux. Lighting, Cab Equipment, & Door Indicators
Replacement - in-kind	Flooring, Seating, Vehicle Insulation
Overhualed	Vehicle Structure, Roof, Exterior Skin, Door Systems, Braking Equipment, Trucks, Propulsion, Pantograph, and Interior.

Body damage on a Green Line Type-7 LRV

All 86 cars will come back to Boston with a brand new paint job similar to the "Olive Green" color that the T has been painting some of the LRV's in recent years.

The re-build is said to last until 2015 but some cars should be back in active service by early 2014.

This overhaul is part of a $104 Million contract that the T has with Alstom. The project is said to create around 200 new jobs for the company. Alstom will also soon be starting the overhaul of the MBTA's 74 Kawasaki bi-level coaches. No timeline has been set up for that project yet.

MBTA set to overhaul bi-levels

©2012 Boston to a T

Last January the MBTA announced that they would be receiving bids for the midlife overhaul of 74 of their Kawasaki bi-level coaches. After recieving and reviewing the bids, it looks like the MBTA will finally be moving forward with the overhaul process.

On July 11th the MBTA board will vote on whether to award the the $114 Million project to Alstom Transportation out of Hornell New York. For those of you who read our last guest post written by Scott Page this is the same company that will be overhauling the MBTA's 86 Type 7 LRV's. 

First MBTA Bi-level coach
debuting at South Station in 1990

The 74 coaches that are being overhauled are numbers 700-749, 1700-1709, and 1711-1724. The contract will also include an option to overhaul an additional 32 cars including numbers 750-781 and the damaged 1710.

The contract for the coaches will last between two or three years. The overhaul work includes replacing and reconditioning the coaches trucks, couplers, HVAC systems, electrical systems, batteries and battery chargers, some interior fixtures and safety-emergency equipment. The MBTA has yet to release which coaches will be sent out to New York first. 

Guest Post: Green Line Trolleys Get New Lease on Life

Here is another great guest post by Scott Page! You can follow him on twitter : @ScottridestheT

MBTA Board of Directors Approves Overhaul of Type 7 Cars

      Identified by their spacious interiors, passenger friendly seating arrangement, and faux wood grain panels the Type 7 light rail vehicles have been the workhorse of the MBTA’s Green Line for the past two decades. The first one hundred cars, built by Japanese manufacturer Kinki-Sharyo, quietly entered service between 1986 and 1987 with an additional order of twenty cars arriving in 1997. The Type 7s have been solid performers since the day they arrived and have single-handedly saved the Green Line from meltdown twice in their service life – the first time upon their arrival in 1986 and for the second time around the turn of the millennium. The cars, now entering their 26^th year of service, recently received the approval of the MBTA’s board of directors to receive a mid-life overhaul expected to extend the life of the trolleys for decades to come.

The $104 million contract with Alstom Transportation Inc of New York calls for the overhaul of the 86 active Type 7 cars from the 1986 order. The contract also carries a provision which allows for the MBTA to overhaul the twenty cars from 1997, which are currently too young for a rebuild, at a later date.

The early 80s were a difficult period for the Green Line. The last of the PCC trolley cars from the 1940s had fallen into disrepair and a fleet of light rail vehicles built by Boeing in the mid-70s were plagued with an assortment of mechanical problems. Car shortages became a frequent service disruption. The arrival of the Type 7s allowed for the retirement of the last PCC cars – with the exception of the small fleet of fully restored cars which still serves the Mattapan-Ashmont High Speed Line – and provided enough cars for the Green Line to meet its requirements regardless of how the temperamental Boeings were performing.

      In the late-90s the MBTA attempted to make the Green Line ADA compliant by introducing a new fleet of 100 Type 8 cars from Italian manufacturer Breda. The cars, which feature a low-floor center for the elderly and handicapped, were intended to replace the last of the aging Boeings and work alongside the Type 7s. But instead of ushering the Green Line into a new era of user friendly service the Type 8s arrived with a thud – literally. 

Plagued by derailments, propulsion and braking problems, and an inability to successfully trainline with existing equipment the Type 8s slowly trickled into service throughout the 2000s – being pulled from service briefly in 2002 – with the last car entering service in 2007. 

As the Type 8s entered service at a molasses-like pace the Boeing fleet dwindled in size and ability. By the time the cars were pulled from service in 2007 they were only capable of doing one to two trips per day. While the Type 8s floundered and the Boeings dropped out of service the Type 7s served as the backbone of the line moving people into and out of the City of Boston. 

After 26 years of remarkable service the cars deserve the TLC and pampering they’re about to receive to ensure they provide quality service for the next two decades.