Bombardier Transportation announced today that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority/Metro-North Railroad (MTA/MNR) has exercised options for 120 M-7 electric multiple unit (EMU) commuter rail cars under an existing contract. The exercised options are valued at $280 million CDN ($206 million US).
With these options, Bombardier now has firm orders for 978 M-7 cars from the MTA commuter railroads – 300 from MTA/MNR and 678 from MTA/Long Island Rail Road (MTA/LIRR). This includes a base order of 192 cars (from MTA/LIRR) and 786 option cars (from both MTA/LIRR and MTA/MNR). Total value of the firm orders received to date is $2.8 billion CDN ($1.9 billion US). Should all 288 remaining options be exercised, the entire contract would total 1,266 cars and be valued at $3.5 billion CDN ($2.4 billion US).
William Spurr, President, Bombardier Transportation, North America, expressed his appreciation at MTA/MNR’s continued confidence in Bombardier’s M-7 product. “This transaction is a compelling sign that the technology is performing well and meeting the high expectations of the MTA commuter railroads,” said Spurr. “We’ve had good feedback from the customer and expect to keep building on that positive track record.”
Spurr said the M-7 fleet is working well in the MTA/LIRR system, with the car’s six-month Mean Distance Between Failure performance averaging 200,000 miles (320 000 kilometers) – a very positive indicator of overall reliability. MTA/LIRR currently has more than 250 M-7 cars in revenue service, and the railroad has expressed publicly its satisfaction with the product’s reliability. Combined, the two MTA commuter railroads represent the largest commuter rail network in North America, serving more than 500,000 riders each weekday.
“I am delighted that our customers and the taxpayers of the State of New York can benefit from this opportunity. I am particularly grateful to the elected officials in the Metro-North service territory who gave their support to this accelerated purchase immediately and unequivocally,” said MTA/MNR President Peter A. Cannito. “We can retire our oldest cars 18 months sooner, reduce maintenance costs and improve fleet reliability. In addition, by ordering more cars, we can take advantage of the per-car savings associated with a larger order even sooner than originally anticipated. It’s a win all around,” added Mr. Cannito.
The new M-7 cars are replacing electric railcars that are more than 40-years old. They feature state-of-the-art rail transportation technology, including IGBT propulsion, energy efficient dynamic braking and on-board monitoring and diagnostic systems.
Stainless steel carbodies for the M-7 cars are constructed at Bombardier’s manufacturing site in La Pocatière, Québec with final assembly and manufacturing taking place at facilities in Plattsburgh, New York. Sub-assembly and manufacturing processes for some components, such as bogie frames, are carried out at Bombardier’s facility in Auburn, New York.
About Bombardier
A world-leading manufacturer of innovative transportation solutions, from regional aircraft and business jets to rail transportation equipment, Bombardier Inc. is a global corporation headquartered in Canada. Its revenues for the fiscal year ended Jan. 31, 2004, were $21.3 billion Cdn and its shares are traded on the Toronto, Brussels and Frankfurt stock exchanges (BBD, BOM and BBDd.F). News and information are available at www.bombardier.com.
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For information:
Hélène V. Gagnon
Director, Communications
+1 450-441-8156